Lufkin 9514642 The part of the mammalian central nervous system called the brainstem is formed embryologically from two regions called the mesencephalon and the rhombencephalon. The rhombencephalon, or hindbrain, is the brainstem region through which motor and sensory information for the facial region is conveyed. Brain development is directed in part by an important group of genes called homeobox, or Hox, genes. Nothing is known about the molecular mechanisms which regulate the neurogenic Hoxa-1 and Hoxa-2 genes, which show highly dynamic spatio-temporal patterns of expression during development. This project uses biochemical approaches with transgenic mice to locate and characterize the DNA regulatory elements (promoters and enhancers) that direct Hoxa-1 and Hoxa-2 gene expression. This work provides important information that will further our basic understanding of how Hox genes control the complex pattern of neural development, and the results will have an impact beyond neuroscience to genetics and developmental biology in general.
