"Small Brains, Big Ideas: The value of model organisms to science”
Dr. Yuly Fuentes-Medel Executive Director Descience Outline 1. What is a model organism?
2. Big questions solved by small-brained organisms
3. Flies’ brains teach us about human brains
4. Inspiring science in emerging economies What is a model organism? An experimental system used to study a fundamental problem, such as a disease
h p://philadams.co/wp-content/uploads/2012/02/yeast1.jpg h p://testweb.science.uu.nl/developmentalbiology/images/adult_worm.jpg Yeast h p://thumbs.dreams me.com/z/fruit-fly-single-drosophila-melanogaster-white-background-34306446.jpg h p://www.renalgenes.org/zebrafish.jpg h p://cdni.wired.co.uk/1920x1280/k_n/Mouse_2.jpg
Model organisms help us study complex problems Studying cell death in a worm sheds light on cancer
Bid, Bax
EGL-1 BCl-2
CED-9
Apaf-1
CED-4
Caspase-9
CED-3
http://web.mit.edu/horvitz/www/peoplelinks/current.html http://www.wormbook.org/chapters/www_programcelldeath/pcdfig1.jpg Cell Death Wingless is a conserved gene that led to solutions to human diseases Fly Human Wg Wg
B-catenin pathway
http://amapress.gen.cam.ac.uk/?p=1191 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Drosophila_melanogaster Example of how flies advanced our understanding of disease Tuberous sclerosis: flies to the rescue TSC1 and TSC2 tumor suppressors antagonize cell growth
TSC1-/-
control
Gao and Pan, Genes Dev. 2001; Potter, Huang and Xu, Cell 2001 http://www.ijdvl.com/articles/2011/77/3/images/ijdvl_2011_77_3_403_79746_f1.jpg Choice of organism should be driven by the problem that you define
Consciousness Memory formation
Lymphoid Programmed Cell http://thealchemicalegg.com/X.GIF development http://24.media.tumblr.com/tumblr_me026d6jry1qf252bo1_r1_1280.jpg http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-e9ayhUJ0ZYc/UTDYwOgt4WI/AAAAAAAAcMY/PgqfIcriJ7k/s1600/white-laboratory-mouse.jpg Death http://www.mpg.de/4377505/zoom.jpg
Summary
• Model organisms are a powerful tool to study biology
• Genes discovered in model organisms have contributed to solving health problems
• Pick the right organism for your specific biological question Model organisms also have brains
h p://testweb.science.uu.nl/developmentalbiology/images/adult_worm.jpg h p://home.physics.ucla.edu/~arisaka/home/CElegans/files/stacks_image_105.jpg h p://stephenesherman.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/10/drosophila12.jpg h p://www.kurzweilai.net/decoding-the-human-brain-with-help-from-a-fly
To understand the brain we need to understand synapses
Synapse Neuromuscular Junction NMJ Why can we study brain problems using fruit flies?
• flies possess 77% of human genes linked with diseases
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC311089/#!po=2.94118 How do we study genetic changes?
normal vs mutant
https://diogenesii.files.wordpress.com/2010/07/lewis-16.gif Drosophila as a model to study synapses
• short generation time (~10 days)
• extremely sophisticated genetic system
• co$t: relatively inexpensive Drosophila Life cycle
http://hiscience.com/aramblog/wp-content/uploads/2013/01/life_cycle.jpg Larvae also have a brain and defined neural circuits
http://www.prokop.co.uk/Research/Drosi-Info/Synapse-location.html This is how synapses look under a microscope
muscle
neuron / muscle
The Fly Neuromuscular Junction: Structure and Function, Volume 75: Second Edition (International Review of Neurobiology.) Synapses can be visualized as synaptic boutons
neuron / muscle
neuron / muscle Precursors of synapses can be observed live under a microscope
0 hr
24 hr Synapses are dynamic structures
PLoS Biol 7(8): e1000184. doi:10.1371/journal.pbio.1000184 http://www.plosbiology.org/article/info:doi/10.1371/journal.pbio.1000184 C. elegans CED-1 is required for engulfment of cell corpses
CED-1
cell corpse
NPXY
engulfing cell engulfment Does Draper signaling work to support maintenance of synapses?
Draper