Mr Maarten Zwart University positionPhD student DepartmentsHome pagehttp://www.zoo.cam.ac.uk/zoostaf... Research ThemeInterestsDendrites are the postsynaptic structures of neurons, specialised to receive and integrate inputs from other cells. The dendritic geometry, regulated by intrinsic programmes of cell type specification and extrinsic factors during development, critically determines the functional properties of the cell. However, one feature of dendritic development that remains poorly understood is the regulation of dendritic growth. We have shown that, similar to vertebrates, the total length of dendritic trees of motoneurons in the Drosophila larval CNS increases proportionally to increases in animal body size, suggesting that this may be a fundamental feature of nervous system development. We are now investigating the role of systemic hormonal signalling and retrograde signals derived from target muscles in the periphery in regulating dendritic growth.  The total length of dendritic trees of motoneurons in the Drosophila larval CNS increases proportionally to increases in animal body size. Ages indicate hours after larval hatching. Click image to view full-size Research Focus
Equipment3D-reconstruction Behavioural analysis Confocal microscopy Electrophysiological recording techniques Fluorescence microscopy Immunohistochemistry Microscopy Single-cell transcriptional profiling Whole cell patch clamp CollaboratorsNo collaborators listed Associated News ItemsPublications2013Hörnberg H, Wollerton-van Horck F, Maurus D, Zwart M, Svoboda H, Harris WA, Holt CE (2013), “RNA-binding protein Hermes/RBPMS inversely affects synapse density and axon arbor formation in retinal ganglion cells in vivo.” J Neurosci 33(25):10384-95 Details Zwart MF, Randlett O, Evers JF, Landgraf M (2013), “Dendritic growth gated by a steroid hormone receptor underlies increases in activity in the developing Drosophila locomotor system.” Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A 110(40):E3878-87 Details 2011Pulver SR, Cognigni P, Denholm B, Fabre C, Gu WX, Linneweber G, Prieto-Godino L, Urbancic V, Zwart M, Miguel-Aliaga I (2011), “Why flies? Inexpensive public engagement exercises to explain the value of basic biomedical research on Drosophila melanogaster.” Adv Physiol Educ 35(4):384-92 Details 2010Barraud P, Seferiadis AA, Tyson LD, Zwart MF, Szabo-Rogers HL, Ruhrberg C, Liu KJ, Baker CV (2010), “Neural crest origin of olfactory ensheathing glia.” Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A 107(49):21040-5 Details 2006Doerflinger H, Benton R, Torres IL, Zwart MF, St Johnston D (2006), “Drosophila anterior-posterior polarity requires actin-dependent PAR-1 recruitment to the oocyte posterior.” Curr Biol 16(11):1090-5 Details |