02/09/2024
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The Enriquez Lab
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The goal of our lab is to understand the development and function of the neuromuscular system
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Development and function of the neuromuscular system
Our research
Locomotion is essential for survival as it allows animals to reproduce, find food, or escape predators. Many different modes of locomotion exist in the animal kingdom, such as flying, crawling, swimming or walking, however, among members of the same species, locomotion is very stereotyped and can be modelled in a very precise manner. This invariable pattern of locomotion can be associated with the unvarying morphology of the neuromuscular system. The goal of our team is to study the coordinated development of the three main components of the neuromuscular system -the motoneurons (MNs), muscles and glia- in order to understand how these cells acquire their intricate morphologies to build a functional locomotor system.
Our system
The adult Drosophila meets all criteria to achieve our goals with ease; in this model it is possible to study the logic of morphological specification in a small number of easily distinguished cells: ~50 MNs per leg, ~14 muscles per leg and ~280 neuropile glia per leg neuropile, using a vast array of powerful genetic tools, without abandoning an appendage-based locomotion scheme.
