Control of development of an embryo: A bid for independence from Mom

ABSTRACT: 

Development after fertilization is controlled by RNAs and proteins that the female deposits into the egg as newly fertilized embryos do not synthesize RNAs and hence proteins from their DNA. The RNAs and proteins in eggs are called maternal factors and perturbations in their function result in death of the embryo. The duration of silence from an embryo`s genome is species specific, which ends when the embryo synthesizes RNA from its own DNA. This switch of developmental control from the egg to the embryo is termed Zygotic Genome Activation (ZGA), a feature that is universal to all eukaryotes. However, the actual mechanism by which the embryo wrests control of its development from its mother`s genomic products (maternal factors) are not very well understood. Our laboratory uses zebrafish to understand the mechanism of ZGA in vertebrates.

The one-cell embryo is the ultimate stem cell, as it makes an entire adult animal and such fundamental studies may provide valuable insights for genome activation in other stem cell contexts.


ABOUT THE SPEAKER

Sreelaja Nair started her Research career with Veronica Rodrigues in DBS. She completed her PhD with Thomas Schilling at the University of California, Irvine. She investigated how the facial skeleton develops in vertebrates, and also how different layers of an embryo separate out dynamically as the embryo develops. She moved to the University of Wisconsin - Madison as a postdoc with Francisco Pellegri, and worked on how maternally provided factors control early cell division in the embryo. Sreelaja joined the DBS as faculty in 2012.

Outside science, Sreelaja is also an accomplished Bharat Natyam dancer.