Abstract:
The microtubule cytoskeleton plays an indispensable role in building the vertebrate central nervous system. Microtubules mediate the separation of sister chromatids during mitosis, they provide the force to translocate the nucleus in migrating neurons, and they are critical for axon extension as neurons differentiate. This talk focuses on an uncharacterised family of Microtubule Associated Serine Threonine (MAST) Kinases, and how mutations in this gene family cause a spectrum of neurological phenotypes, most notably mega corpus callosum syndrome.The microtubule cytoskeleton plays an indispensable role in building the vertebrate central nervous system. Microtubules mediate the separation of sister chromatids during mitosis, they provide the force to translocate the nucleus in migrating neurons, and they are critical for axon extension as neurons differentiate. This talk focuses on an uncharacterised family of Microtubule Associated Serine Threonine (MAST) Kinases, and how mutations in this gene family cause a spectrum of neurological phenotypes, most notably mega corpus callosum syndrome.