Manchester Neuroscience Seminar Series - Speaker: Dr Ximena Soto rodriguez from the University of Manchester
| Dates: | 5 February 2025 |
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| Times: | 14:00 - 15:00 |
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| What is it: | Seminar |
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| Organiser: | School of Biological Sciences |
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| Who is it for: | University staff |
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| Speaker: | Dr Ximena Soto rodriguez |
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Please join us for the Manchester Neuroscience Seminar Series, Wednesday 5 February 2025 14:00 – 15:00, the speaker is Dr Ximena Soto rodriguez from the University of Manchester.
The host will be Dr Nina Milosavljevic
Title: "The role of dynamic expression in neurogenesis during development and regeneration"
Abstract: The development of the brain requires a tight balance between stem cell proliferation and differentiation. Previous work has shown that specific genes, such as the Her/Hes transcription repressor family, are essential for the maintenance of neuronal stem cells and factors such as the microRNA (miR), controls their expression. My own research has shown that during development the generation of new neurons, genes (i.e. Her/Hes gene family) are not simply on or off. Instead, their levels pulse dynamically over time, influenced by the miR, and control whether the cells stay as proliferating progenitors or becoming new neurons.
It is known that the same genes involved in development of the nervous system are reactivated upon spinal cord (SC) injury and are important during SC regeneration. However, the mechanisms are unknown. Therefore, it is not clear whether during SC regeneration and the generation of new neurons are also controlled by the pulses in gene expression.
In this presentation I describe using the zebrafish model to study dynamic gene expression during development of the nervous system and then go on to discuss ongoing work on its role in SC regeneration. This work focus studying Her dynamic expression and how miR finely-tune its expression providing an understanding on the mechanism and functional importance of pulsatile gene activity during neuronal cell-fate decisions in development and regeneration. This will grant new insights with potential translational implications for injuries on SC in animals with no regenerative capacity, such as mice and humans.
Where: The seminar will take place in the Michael Smith Lecture Theatre
Speaker
Dr Ximena Soto rodriguez
Organisation: University of Manchester
Travel and Contact Information
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Michael Smith Lecture Theatre
Michael Smith Building
Manchester
