Research statement
From birth to adulthood a neuron changes is complex shape to support different functions. Modelling the development of the nervous systems has been intense, but there are very few well-accepted and tested theories and models for how the machinery of development operates. Dendritic arborization neurons in Drosophila Melanogaster provide an excellent model system to tackle this question because it offers the possibility of sophisticated genetic manipulations and imaging. We aim to record and process high resolution time-lapse images of dendritic birth in the embryo and its maturation in the larva of wild type and mutants. The time-lapse data will enable us to create growth models that will shed a light on questions about dendritic pattern formation and how individual type of neurons control branching and achieve distinct complexities.
André Ferreira Castro’s personal homepage
Key publications
Ferreira Castro A, Baltruschat L, Stürner T, Bahrami A, Jedlicka P, Tavosanis G, Cuntz H (2020). Achieving functional neuronal dendrite structure through sequential stochastic growth and retraction. eLife 9, e60920. https://doi.org/10.7554/eLife.60920