Detailed Biography:

Research Interest: Genetic control of organogenesis in Drosophila We are using Drosophila as a model genetic system to identify and study genes that control development of epithelial organs. Examples of epithelial organs in vertebrates are the digestive tract, liver, lung, salivary glands and mammary glands. In Drosophila, we are trying to understand the molecular/genetic basis of the formation and morphogenesis of a portion of the digestive tract, the hindgut, since this is a simple, single layered epithelial organ that develops from a small number of cells. Previously, we worked out a genetic pathway in which a cascade of transcription factors establishes the hindgut primordium, controls its invagination during gastrulation, and maintains and promotes its further development. By genetic screening, we have identified genes that are required for the later morphogenesis (elongation by cell rearrangement) of the hindgut. We are carrying out molecular/genetic characterization of the function of these genes, in particular their role in regulating cell signaling in the hindgut, which we believe plays a required role in its elongation. We are carrying out additional screens, examining living embryos expressing green fluorescent protein (GFP) in the hindgut, to identify more genes required for hindgut morphogenesis. Because the genome is sequenced, progress in Drosophila molecular genetics can be surprisingly rapid. We expect that a more detailed understanding of the molecular basis of cell rearrangement in organogenesis will have important implications for human genetics, cancer and birth defects.