NEMAGENETAG - Nematode Gene-Tagging Tools and Resources (FP6-LIFESCIHEALTH) (2004-01-01 - 2006-12-31) (»add to infobox)

Nektarios TAVERNARAKIS, Jean-Louis BESSEREAU, Jonathan EWBANK, Peter VAN OSTA, Patricia KUWABARA, Laurent SEGALAT

FOUNDATION FOR RESEARCH AND TECHNOLOGY HELLAS (GR43 - Kriti) (Greece), INSTITUT NATIONAL DE LA SANTE ET DE LA RECHERCHE MEDICALE (INSERM) (FR101 - Paris) (France), CENTRE NATIONAL DE LA RECHERCHE SCIENTIFIQUE (CNRS) (FR101 - Paris) (France), MAIA SCIENTIFIC NV (BE213 - Arr. Turnhout) (Belgium), UNIVERSITY OF BRISTOL (UKK11 - Bristol, City of) (Great Britain), CENTRE NATIONAL DE LA RECHERCHE SCIENTIFIQUE (CNRS) (FR716 - Rhône) (France)

The nematode Caenorhabditis elegans is a widely appreciated, powerful platform in which to study important biological mechanisms related to human health. More than 65% of human disease genes have homologues in the C. elegans genome, and essential aspects of mammalian cell biology, neurobiology and development are faithfully recapitulated in this organism. We propose to develop cutting-edge tools and resources that will facilitate modeling of human pathologies in C. elegans, and advance our understanding of animal development and physiology. Specifically, we will optimize and automate existing transposon-mediated mutagenesis methodologies based on the Mos1 transposable element, in addition to developing alternatives using the Minos transposon system. We will exploit these tools to generate and evaluate a collection of transposon-tagged mutants, aiming to cover the complete genome of approximately 20,000 genes. Further, we will establish the infrastructure necessary for managing and maintaining this resource. To achieve these goals, we have assembled a group of experts with pioneering contributions to transposon and genomics technologies in C. elegans. Our partner, Union Biometrica NV, European Scientific Operations, is a company specializing on platform technology development and will provide solutions essential for the automation and streamlining of the processes involved in generating libraries of mutant strains. The final product of our focused project-a comprehensive collection of transposon-tagged alleles-together with the acquisition of efficient transposon-based tools for mutagenesis and transgenesis in C. elegans, should be of great value to the European and international scientific community. Our efforts will strengthen European research in the strategic area of functional genomics and yield a wealth of information on gene function, immediately relevant to pharmaceutical R&D.

PERSONS (6/6)

RELATED NAVIGATION AREA(S) (2/2)