In the Seminar in Neuroscience course taught by Dr. Fernandes, the students split into groups to learn about the topics being researched in labs on Miami’s campus. We chose Katia Del Rio-Tsonis and studied her lab on retinal regeneration. Katia Del Rio-Tsonis’ lab focuses on retinal regeneration using mainly embryonic chicks in order to “understand the molecular and cellular mechanisms involved in the process of regeneration from the terminally differentiated PECs or retinal stem cells to the newly formed lens and retina”(Del-Rio Tsonis, 2020). The main research question asks: How do signal pathways work that are crucial for the induction of ventral iris-regeneration? The research is relevant in Dr. Del Rio-Tsonis’ lab by helping to find ways to solve many astigmatisms in the eye previously incurable. They use mainly chick embryos to dive deeper into the science behind their capability to do retinal regeneration. A primary goal was to characterize the kinetics of AKT and JNK activation during retinal regeneration. These pathways were inhibited at their peak to determine if the ventral lens regeneration requires these signaling pathways. There have been tools developed to delve into what molecular mechanisms are responsible for orchestrating the process of regeneration in tissues in the lab. Other results and conclusions made have included “the activation of stem/progenitor cells located in the anterior margin of the eye”(Del Rio-Tsonis, 2020) being responsible for regeneration. With these advancements in her lab, the possibilities of retinal regeneration being used in medicine is getting even closer. In both the lab and the research articles, they focus on animal models in regards to retinal regeneration and having an overall understanding of molecular and cellular mechanisms involved in processes of regeneration to damaged stem cells that could provide information for the development and understanding of such tissues.
Authors: Abby Morrison, Kennedy Cordes, Lindsay Kocher, and Micheal Soupene
Faculty Advisor: Joyce Fernandes, Biology
Graduate Student Advisor: Gabriella Rapp, Biology Major
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