BEGIN:VCALENDAR
VERSION:2.0
PRODID:-//Talks.cam//talks.cam.ac.uk//
X-WR-CALNAME:Talks.cam
BEGIN:VEVENT
SUMMARY:Amphioxus: an unusual model gives insight into chordate developmen
 t and regeneration - Ildiko Somorjai\, University of St Andrews\, UK
DTSTART:20130522T120000Z
DTEND:20130522T130000Z
UID:TALK45242@talks.cam.ac.uk
CONTACT:25354
DESCRIPTION:The cephalochordate amphioxus is the most basal invertebrate c
 hordate. It is characterized by a relatively simple body plan and morpholo
 gy\, including segmented musculature\, a dorsal hollow nerve cord and a no
 tochord. It also has “prototypical” genome architecture and gene conte
 nt\, having diverged prior to the two whole-genome duplications that occur
 red during vertebrate evolution. As a result\, amphioxus is emerging as a 
 good model system for understanding the evolution of developmental mechani
 sms at the invertebrate-vertebrate transition.\nRegeneration is widely but
  patchily distributed among the Metazoa\, with most phyla represented by b
 oth good and poor regenerators. Vertebrates are no exception\, and yet on 
 the whole regenerate poorly compared to invertebrate deuterostomes. Recent
 ly\, I have shown that amphioxus also shows extensive regenerative potenti
 al even as an adult\, and that it shares similarities with vertebrate rege
 neration models. It therefore shows potential as a system to shed light on
  the evolution of regeneration mechanisms in chordates. \n\nResearch in my
  laboratory focuses on comparative aspects of embryonic development and re
 generation using amphioxus as a model. I will present the current state of
  knowledge on the role of several major signaling pathways in amphioxus de
 velopment\, as well as ongoing efforts to develop amphioxus as a regenerat
 ion model system. The long term goal is to bridge the gap in our understan
 ding of the differences between embryonic and post-embryonic developmental
  processes. 
LOCATION:Part II Lecture Theatre\, Department of Zoology
END:VEVENT
END:VCALENDAR