Mechanisms of axon loss in cortical development

• Applicant: Professor Dr. Thomas Misgeld
• Subject Area: Molecular Biology and Physiology of Neurons and Glial Cells
• Term: from 2007 to 2009
• Project identifier: Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG) - Project number 43761726

In the developing nervous system myriads of aberrant axonal connections need to be pruned. The mechanisms of this massive physiological axon loss are not understood. I plan to use in vivo imaging of transgenically labeled axons and glial cells to reveal how this axon loss happens in the developing cortex. By additionally visualizing and manipulating selected pathways of axon dismantling (such as Wallerian degeneration or axon involution), this project will provide a comprehensive analysis of how axons remodel physiologically, and to what extent these developmental mechanisms resemble those active in disease.

• DFG Programme: Research Grants