NYCCS/AMS Seminar

Dmitri Papatsenko

Department of Molecular & Cell Biology
University of California, Berkeley

Wednesday, February 14, 2007 @ 1:00 PM
Math Tower Rm. 1-122

Quantitative models describing spatial responses of early developmental genes

Abstract:
Development of an organism from a single cell is a progressive gain of
spatial system complexity/spatial system information in time. The information is
encrypted in genomic DNA sequences and the mechanisms of its unfolding into the
complex tissues and body parts are largely unknown. Early developmental genes produce spatial gene expression patterns, corresponding to future body layers/body compartments.
I will describe a possible way of formalization of the developmental gene networks into quantitative models and will discuss how to use regulatory DNA information in the model construction. Model analysis and fitting with quantitative gene expression data produced predictions on how to change spatial gene expression by changing regulatory DNA sequences. Testing model predictions in transgenic flies supported model construction strategy and some of the major assumptions.
Observed feed-forward interactions between the developmental genes in this study may be applied to a wider range of developmental systems.