Profiles

Danna Zeiger

Graduate Student

B.S., Neuroscience and Behavior, Barnard College, Columbia University, 2006.

danna [at] brandeis.edu

Funding: NIH NRSA Predoctoral Fellowship

Characterization of the dauer pathway and the identification of dauer pheromone components

My long-term interest in the mechanisms by which the nervous system responds to external stimuli, and how these experiences shape nervous system function, has spanned many model organisms and research settings. Varied research experiences in the field of neurobiology have reaffirmed my interest in understanding the molecular and neuronal basis of animal chemical communication, my current field of research.

Pheromones act as both short-term olfactory cues that signal danger or the presence of mates, as well as long-term cues, which mediate changes in development and physiology via modulation of the neuroendocrine axis. Little is known about the mechanisms by which pheromone signals are transduced to modulate neurohormonal signaling in mammals, although dysregulation of this signaling can result in developmental and behavioral disorders. Olfactory signal transduction mechanisms are highly conserved across organisms, as are mechanisms of neuronal transmission, indicating that studying these processes in model organisms may provide insights into related processes in higher organisms.

In C. elegans, the dauer pheromone regulates entry into the alternate dauer developmental stage via regulation of hormonal signaling, and provides an excellent model system in which to explore how pheromone signals are recognized and transduced to govern a critical developmental decision. The recent identification of both the structurally related ascarosides comprising dauer pheromone in C. elegans, and the first two pheromone receptors in C. elegans, whose mutants are defective in pheromone-mediated regulation of hormonal signaling, remains elusive in other model organisms. The goal of my research is to identify additional receptors required for pheromone signal transduction, and to characterize a gene required for inter-neuronal pheromone signal transmission. This work will contribute to our understanding of the pathways by which pheromones regulate critical behavioral and developmental decisions, and how dysfunction of these pathways can lead to impaired development, behavioral disorders, and obesity.

Sengupta Lab Publications

Kim, K., Sato, K., Shibuya, M., Zeiger, D., Butcher, R., Ragains, J., Clardy, J., Touhara, K., and Sengupta, P. Two chemoreceptors mediate developmental effects of dauer pheromone in C. elegans. Science. 2009 13:994- 998. [PubMed] #Accompanying Perspectives article in Science. 2009 13:944-945. [PubMed]