Speaker: David Wilkinson
MRC National Institute for Medical Research, London, UK 

HOST

Eduard Batlle, IRB Barcelona

Friday, 17 September 2010, 12:00h, Aula Fèlix Serratosa

ABSTRACT

The control of cell migration is essential for the generation and maintenance of organised patterns of cell types during development and in the mature organism. A striking example is the formation of sharp boundaries between distinct cell populations, across which cell migration is inhibited. Our studies seek to identify the mechanisms that underlie boundary formation and the control of cell differentiation during nervous system development. We have identified roles of Eph receptor and ephrin signaling in preventing intermingling of cells across boundaries. This talk will first present our progress in understanding how Eph receptor and ephrin signaling leads to the segregation of cells and formation of sharp borders. I will then discuss a novel mechanism we uncovered that underlies the correct organisation of neuronal cell differentiation in the developing hindbrain, and evidence that it is linked to the formation of boundaries.

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