Thy-1 is a member of the immunoglobulin supergene family that codes for a cell surface recognition molecule that is expressed only in the immune and nervous systems. The function of Thy-1 is unknown. Transgenic mice will be developed to study the function and cellular expression of Thy-1 in the developing nervous system. Genetic techniques to make mutant embryonic stem cells lacking the Thy-1.2 allele will be used to make transgenic mice lacking expression of Thy-1. These mice will be used to study the role of this protein in neural development. In addition, transgenic mice containing a marker protein whose expression is directed by the Thy-1 promoter will be used to study the lineages of cells that express Thy-1 in the neuroepithelium.
