9511241 PALKA This research will investigate a novel gene that has been found to be important in sensory system development. This gene, called "defective modalities" ("demo"), when mutated, results in abnormalities in the visual, olfactory, and gustatory systems. The experiments that will be performed take advantage of the power of an invertebrate model system to analyze this gene at a number of levels. Physiological analysis will more completely define the nature of the defects caused by mutation of the demo gene, a molecular biological analysis will characterize the gene and its products, and ultrastructural analysis will be used to define the subcellular localization of demo expression. Based on previous phenotypic analysis, it is hypothesized that the demo product is involved, as either a receptor or adhesion molecule, in synaptic transmission in sensory systems. The multidisciplinary analyses described above are designed to test this hypothesis. The results of these experiments will provide basic information about the role of adhesion molecules and receptors in the development of sensory systems.
