University of Michigan
Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology

Professor Scott Barolo, University of Michigan Medical School, Cell and Developmental Biology

Abstract

A handful of ancient developmental signals, such as Hedgehog, Notch, Wnt, and RTK/MAPK, control cell fate by activating transcription factors (TFs), which bind to specific sites in animal genomes to turn genes on and off.  These pathways and TFs are highly pleiotropic: they are involved in many developmental fate decisions in diverse organs, tissue types, and stem cell systems.  How does one signal have different effects on gene expression in different types of cells, and how do genomic DNA sequences evolve in response to that signal?  I will present results from our investigations of specific cis-regulatory sequences (aka enhancers) and the developmental and evolutionary forces that shape them, at the level of individual TF binding sites.

Host: Professor Patricia Wittkopp

Coffee and cookies will be served at 4 p.m.