9604599 Finlay This U.S.-Brazil award will support collaborative research between Dr. Barbara L. Finlay of Cornell University and Dr. Luiz Carlos de Lima Silveira at the Universidade Federal do Para, Centro de Ciencias Biologicas, to study the development and evolution of the primate retina. Drs. Finlay and De Lima Silveira will investigate the development and evolution of the visual system, using New World primates. The developmental mechanisms that produce the eye must use mechanisms, which are defined at a cellular level, to solve functional problems, such as color perception and night vision. Finlay has expertise in the developmental neurobiology of eye growth, and control of neuron number and topography. De Lima Silveira has experience in comparative anatomy and physiology of the New World primate retina, with particular attention to the differences in eyes associated with color vision and nocturnal and diurnal niches. In addition to the benefit of combining the unique resources of the two labs, access will be gained to the National Research Center for Primates which is located near Belem. This facility has established breeding colonies for all the monkeys needed for this study. Facilities such as this one, with a such a diversity of species, are not available in the United States. ***
