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CELL BIOLOGY OF THE NEURON Polarity ... - Tavernarakis Lab

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Cell Biology of the Neuron: <strong>Polarity</strong>, Plasticity and Regeneration, Crete 2011<br />

Development of the Corticospinal Tract: Integration<br />

into Spinal Circuitry Important for Coordinating<br />

Complex Motor Behaviors<br />

Kathryn Lewallen, Ariel Levine, Sam Pfaff<br />

Salk Institute<br />

The corticospinal tract (CST) forms the longest axon trajectory in the mammalian<br />

central nervous system, extending processes from the motor cortex to functional<br />

targets throughout the length of the spinal cord. As a graduate student in the<br />

laboratory of Dr. Sam Pfaff at the Salk Institute, I am interested in understanding<br />

how corticospinal motor neurons integrate intrinsic and extrinsic cues to carry out<br />

specified functions, such as coordinating complex motor behaviors. Specifically,<br />

my thesis project involves the identification of cellular players and molecules that<br />

direct synaptic specificity during development. I am using novel genetic tools<br />

combined with single axon fiber resolution to study the CST during axonal<br />

growth, synaptic target selection, and activity-dependent maturation. My analysis<br />

includes a comprehensive descriptive analysis of the CST in normal development<br />

and in mutants that perturb CST formation and axon guidance. By understanding<br />

the mechanisms that direct corticospinal connectivity, we can gain additional<br />

insight into the pathways that can be recapitulated in a regenerative context.<br />

Presented by: Lewallen, Kathryn<br />

145<br />

Poster No 063<br />

Blue Session

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