Proposal Number: IBN-9528526 Principal Investigator: Day, Richard N. Cells respond to environmental and developmental stimuli through changes in intracellular signaling pathways that lead to an altered pattern of gene expression. Monitoring of these processes as they occur in living cells is a major challenge for biological research. Dr. Day and his colleagues propose to use a neuronal cell line which synthesize and secrete gonadotropin-releasing hormone (GnRH) as a model system to develop a combined approach to simultaneously monitor gene expression, intracellular calcium and electrical activity in single living cells with temporal resolution. These studies are appropriate for a Small Grant for Exploratory Research because of the high risk associated with establishing the technology to ascertain all of these cellular parameters from a single cell and the significant impact of these studies to biological research. If these experiments are successful, new understanding will be forthcoming about the mechanisms used by cells to transmit signals from the cell surface to the nucleus. An additional impact of this research will be, if successful, the method used for these studies will be applicable to the study of virtually any eukaryotic cell system providing unique temporal linkage of membrane and nuclear events. The tpansfer of this technology to the organismal level will permit this investigator to examine cells in their natural surrounding without compromising their integrity, but permitting their unambiguous identification.
