How do sensory neurons acquire their unique functions?
Like other animals, C. elegans is attracted to, or avoids, subsets of chemicals. Chemicals are recognized by a small number of chemosensory neurons, each of which expresses a defined subset of signaling genes such as chemoreceptors, and exhibits a distinct cell type-specific morphology. Neuronal specification: We are investigating the molecular mechanisms that confer cell type-specific properties onto each of these sensory neuron types. We have identified transcription factor cascades that are essential for the expression of cell-specific signaling genes. We are also dissecting the cis-regulatory mechanisms that drive gene expression in defined cell types. A) Examples of amphid ciliated sensory neurons: channel and wing (ASH and AWB, respectively). (B) The forked ciliary morphology of the AWB olfactory neuron type visualized via cell-specific GFP expression (from Mukhopadhyay et al., 2008) Cilia development: Several chemosensory neuron types exhibit highly specialized ciliary structure
