Faillace

GROUP LEADER NAME (as it appears in publications):

Maria Paula Faillace

AFFILIATION:

1. Instituto de Química y Fisicoquímica Biológicas (IQUIFIB) - CONICET

2. Departamento de Fisiología, Facultad de Medicina, Universidad de Buenos Aires

TEL:* ( 54 11) 59509500 extension: 2148

FAX:* (54 11) 59509611

EMAIL:* pfaillace@qb.ffyb.uba.ar

WEB: http://www.fmed.uba.ar/depto/fisiologia/neureting.htm

GROUP NAME / RESEARCH INTEREST IN FEW WORDS:

Neurobiology of the Vertebrate Retina Lab.

Neuronal and Müller glia genesis and differentiation in the zebrafish retina. Cell growth and tissue regeneration in vertebrate animal models. Extracellular signaling and their role in neurogenic mechanisms: Purinergic and other neurotransmitter systems.

SHORT SUMMARY OF RESEARCH INTEREST (MAX. 200 WORDS):

 Note: please attach at the end of the form a longer description, with a maximum of 2000 words.

Our lab studies neurogenesis and differentiation in the adult zebrafish retina. We use the zebrafish retina as a model because it offers unique features to investigate extracellular (extrinsic) as well as genetic (intrinsic) factors that regulate neuronal and glial differentiation in a tissue of the adult nervous system. Furthermore, we analyze the effect of extracellular signals, such as purinergic or other neurotransmitter systems, on proliferation and differentiation of progenitor cells and the role of such signals on regeneration after damaging the retina. We aim to understand physiological mechanisms and to identify signals that constitute extracellular niches for growth and regeneration of retinal cells in the zebrafish. Eventually, we wish to contribute with valuable knowledge that could be useful for treating degenerative diseases that involve lost of several retinal cell types and cause blindness.

LIST OF UP TO FIVE RELEVANT PUBLICATIONS:

1- Battista AG, Villagra D, Faillace MP. A Global Injury of Zebrafish Retina Induces mRNA Expression of Purinergic Receptors and Ecto-nucleotidases that Control In Vivo Cell Proliferation. Enviado junio 2011.

2- Purinergic signals regulate daily S-phase cell activity in the ciliary marginal zone of the zebrafish retina. Ricatti MJ, Battista AG, Zubilete MZ, Faillace MP.  J Biol Rhythms. 2011 Apr;26(2):107-17.

3-Extracellular ADP regulates lesion-induced in vivo cell proliferation and death in the zebrafish retina. Battista AG, Ricatti MJ, Pafundo DE, Gautier MA, Faillace MP.                          J Neurochem. 2009 Oct;111(2):600-13. Epub 2009 Aug 19.

4- Immunocytochemical localization of NTPDases1 and 2 in the neural retina of mouse and zebrafish. Ricatti MJ, Alfie LD, Lavoie EG, Sévigny J, Schwarzbaum PJ, Faillace MP. Synapse. 2009 Apr;63(4):291-307

5 -Cellular processing of cone photoreceptor cyclic GMP-gated ion channels: a role for the S4 structural motif. Faillace MP, Bernabeu RO, Korenbrot JI. J Biol Chem. 2004 May 21;279(21):22643-53. Epub 2004 Mar 15

6 -Mitotic activation of proliferative cells in the inner nuclear layer of the mature fish retina: regulatory signals and molecular markers. Faillace MP, Julian D, Korenbrot JI. J Comp Neurol. 2002 Sep 16;451(2):127-41

GROUP MEMBERS (NAME, POSITION, EMAIL):*

1.  Ariadna G. Battista, PhD fellow, arigaby_9@yahoo.com

2.  Maria Jimena Ricatti, PhD fellow, mjricatti@yahoo.com

3.  Carlos David Bruque, PhD student, bruque_carlos@hotmail.com

4.  Diego Villagra, Medical student, dvsato@gmail.com

5.  Dr. Ramón Bernabeu, Principal Investigator of the “Laboratorio de Neurobiología Celular y Conductual” very close to our lab. He develops his own and collaborates with our zebrafish projects, rbernabeu@fmed.uba.ar

FISH FACILITIES (TYPE OF FISH SYSTEM/TANKS, CAPACITY, ETC.)*

Juvenile and Adult wild type zebrafish (Danio rerio) (purchased in local facilities). We do not reproduce our own stock.

Facility to maintain and acclimatize zebrafish in the lab:  3 x 80 l tanks and 2 (or more) x 20 l tanks. With pH, temperature, nitrites, light-dark cycle, and water conductivity control. Tap water is first filtered with activated charcoal and mix with distilled water to keep low conductivity and aerated for at least 3 days and brought to 28 ºC. Water in tanks is continuously filtered (charcoal activated) and aerated with filters within tanks. Tank walls and filters are cleaned and renewed at least once weekly.

We also count with ad-hoc tanks for behavioral tests.

FISH LINES KEPT IN STOCK:*

None

OTHER EQUIPMENT RELATED TO ZEBRAFISH RESEARCH*

1. Micropump injector for introducing plasmids or antisens morpholinos to zebrafish oocytes, also to inject adult eyes.

2. Recently, Dr. Ramón Bernabeu has purchased and built different devices for testing visual acuity/performance or drug of abuse in zebrafish (behavioral tests).

3. Confocal microscope.

LAB EXPERTISE AND TECHNICAL CAPABILITIES (RELATED TO ZEBRAFISH RESEARCH)*

Eyecup preparation. Intact retinas dissection. Cryostat sectioning. Oocyte microinjection. Intravitreal (intraocular) in vivo injections. Several histological techniques. Enzymatic activity measurements. ATP level determination (luciferine-luciferase) with a luminometer. Immunohistochemistry. Techniques for damaging retinas (surgery, cytotoxic). Confocal microscopy. Western Blot. Standard and quantitative RT-PCR. Basic molecular biology techniques. In vivo electroporation. Behavioral tests.

OTHER RELEVANT INFORMATION:*

Regeneration and growth that occur in the adult teleost retina have been helpful in identifying molecular and cellular mechanisms underlying cell proliferation and differentiation. Eyes in fish grow throughout life and the retina matches this growth by stretching and the continuous differentiation of new cells. Genesis of retinal cells, except rod photoreceptors, occurs in a germinal neuroepithelium at the periphery of the neural retina, the ciliary marginal zone (CMZ). Rod photoreceptors differentiate from precursor cells embedded in the outer nuclear layer (ONL) within the mature retina. In teleost fish, damage of the mature retina activates repair mechanisms and regenerated neurons arise from intrinsic germinal cells. There are different pools of putative progenitors: pax6-expressing stem cells at the inner nuclear layer-inner plexiform layer (INL–IPL) border, proliferative cell clusters in the INL, and a subset of Müller glia reentering the cell cycle following injury to produce neuronal progenitors. In the developing vertebrate retina as well as in the dynamic retina of adult teleost fish, a coordinated balance of progenitor cell proliferation and cell-cycle exit is critical for the generation of a functional neural and glial network. Among several cues controlling these processes, purinergic signaling has a major role in regulating cell-cycle activity in early stages of the developing vertebrate retina.