Efficient, High-Fidelity Neuronal Wiring Through Guidance Receptor Multifunctionality

The goal of the Jaworski lab is to understand how the nervous system is wired up during embryonic development. The guidance of nascent axons to their correct targets is an important aspect of brain wiring, and it is mediated by molecular cues that activate receptors on the leading process of the axon, the growth cone, to attract or repel axons. The mechanisms of axon pathfinding are still not completely defined, and it remains elusive how information from multiple guidance cues is filtered or integrated to sculpt neural circuits with high fidelity. The lab studies molecular and cellular mechanisms of axon guidance and target selection with an emphasis on signal integration and filtering. To this end, the lab employs various experimental approaches, including molecular biology, biochemistry, cell biology, embryology, and mouse genetics, and we incorporate cutting-edge methods such as ex utero culture of mouse embryos and in toto imaging of the developing nervous system.