Abigael Oshodi / Biology / Faculty Mentor: Piya Ghose
Normal brain development is achieved through both regressive and progressive events that must be precisely regulated. Part of this regulation is programmed elimination of neurons, which is especially intriguing given the diverse compartments of these specialized cells. Neurons can also be lost in neurodegenerative diseases or following injury. The C. elegans tail-spike cell is a differentiated cell found in the embryo that extends a long neurite-like process posteriorly to help form the tail tip. In the late embryo stage, the tail-spike cell normally dies via an elaborate cell death program called Compartmentalized Cell Elimination (CCE). CCE in C. elegans requires the main caspase protease CED-3 and its immediate upstream regulators. When CED-3/caspase activity is entirely lost, CCE fails and the tail-spike cell lives—even in larva—intact with its posteriorly directed process.
We have found that when ced-3/caspase mutants are aged, new additional processes extend from the cell body. We propose the application of the tail-spike cell to study aberrant cell outgrowth in vivo. We address the underexplored question of links between antithetical cell fates of elimination and outgrowth in differentiated cells like neurons, as neurons that survive inappropriately can form undesired connections that may be detrimental nervous system function.
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