Inductive mechanisms play a major role in the development of the central nervous system as well as of other tissues in the organism. In particular, given the importance of the visual system in vertebrates, induction of eye development is one of the most extensively studied and serves at a paradigm for the inductive process. However, little is known about the induction of the neuroretina. The proposed research will utilize a combination of molecular, biochemical and histological approaches to identify factors that induce formation of the retina. We will undertake two parallel strategies. Firstly, we will investigate the effect of candidate retinal inducers identified in other systems. In addition, we will also perform an expression screen of Xenopus cDNA library for transcripts that induce formation of the retina. We believe that the combination of these two approaches will successfully identify genes that play a role in retinal development. These experiments will also further the understanding of general inductive mechanisms and their regulation. In addition, further comprehension of the inductive process in the eye will advance the prospects for regeneration and repair of ophtamological damage.
