SFB 592:  Signaling Mechanisms in Embryogenesis and Organogenesis

• Subject Area: Biology ; Agriculture, Forestry and Veterinary Medicine ; Medicine
• Term: from 2001 to 2012
• Project identifier: Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG) - Project number 5484803

The collaborative research centre 592 investigates basic mechanisms involved in embryonic pattern formation as well as differentiation and morphogenesis during organogenesis. Both animal and plant systems are analyzed in parallel, as basic aspects of signaling mechanisms, like the formation of signal sources, the control of the range of signaling, or the signal transduction mechanisms are common to many systems.
Research area A "Signaling Mechanisms" investigates the formation of signaling molecules, the establishment of local sources, as well as the influence of signals on cell behavior and cell differentiation. Among the projects, one focus is on integration of different signaling pathways to achieve developmental decisions. Among the signaling molecules investigated are Wnt, Delta/Notch, FGFs, TGFs, Hedgehog, Phytochrome, Calcium and Auxin. Research area B "Cell Polarity" investigates the polarization of cells and tissues as a basis for developmental decisions (organ differentiation, formation of signaling sources). Aspects as diverse as polar signal transport, polar signal transduction, and epithelio-mesenchymal transitions are studied. In some projects, biomedically relevant questions concerning the role of polar epithelia and polar signaling during organogenesis are investigated. The centre also operates a central unit "In vivo imaging for visualization of signaling and regulatory processes", which provides and optimizes methods for visualization of signaling pathway components and activity states in living embryos. One goal is to visualize signaling mechanisms during embryogenesis in real-time.

• DFG Programme: Collaborative Research Centres
• International Connection: Israel

Completed projects

• A01 - Signaling mechanisms in somite cell specification (Project Head Scaal, Martin )
• A2 - Signalmechanismen bei der Segmentierung von Wirbeltieren (Project Head Herrmann, Bernhard G. )
• A03 - Establishment of signaling centers, pattern formation, and control of differentiation in the zebrafish gastrula: roles of Pou5fl (Project Heads Driever, Wolfgang ;  Onichtchouk, Daria )
• A04 - Umsetzung von TGF-ß Signalen bei der embryonalen Musterbildung und Differenzierung (Project Head Meyer, Dirk )
• A5 - Die Rolle von Hedgehog in der Adenohypophysenentwicklung und der Ausbildung asonaler Bahnen im Gehirn des Zebrafischs (Project Head Varga, Zoltán Marton )
• A7 - Signal induzierte Symmetrie-Etablierung in der frühen Embryogenese bei Pflanzen (Project Head Neuhaus, Gunther )
• A08 - Photomorphogenesis in plants: spatial and temporal patterns of phytochrome-mediated signal transduction (Project Heads Kircher, Stefan ;  Nagy, Ph.D., Ferenc ;  Schäfer, Eberhard )
• A10 - Stem cell regulation in Arabidopsis plant apical meristems (Project Head Laux, Thomas )
• A11 - Festlegung der Position von Organen in Arabidopsis thaliana (Project Head Laux, Thomas )
• A12 - Molekulare Funktionen des FGF Signalwegs bei der Entwicklung des Wirbeltiergesichts (Project Head Neubüser, Annette )
• A14 - Signalling pathways required for propagation and differentiation of thymic epithelial progenitor cells (Project Head Boehm, Thomas )
• A16 - Genetische Analyse der Hypophysen-Entwicklung im Zebrafisch (Project Head Hammerschmidt, Matthias )
• A19 - ceh-16/engrailed kompartimentiert die Epidermis des Fadenwurms Caenorhabditis elegans (Project Head Baumeister, Ralf )
• A20 - Reelin signaling in the development of layers in the neocortex (Project Head Frotscher, Michael )
• A21 - Regulation of neural stem cell maintenance and fate choice in the vertebrate brain through novel aspects of Notch signaling (Project Head Taylor, Ph.D., Verdon )
• A22 - TGF-ß/GDNF-mediated crosstalk during sympathetic neuron development (Project Head Krieglstein, Kerstin )
• A23 - Specification and maintenance of chromaffin cells and their preganglionic innervation (Project Heads Kalcheim, Ph.D., Chaya ;  Unsicker, Klaus )
• B01 - In vivo Analyse von Protocadherin-ß Genen (Project Head Kemler, Rolf )
• B04 - Epithelio-mesenchymale Transitionen während der Entwicklung des paraxialen und intermediären Mesoderms (Project Head Brand-Saberi, Beate )
• B5 - Kontrolle der späten Lungendifferenzierung in der Maus (Project Head Sippel, Albrecht E. )
• B6 - Elucidating novel mechanisms of focal adhesion signaling by targeted disruption of the mouse nephrocystin gene (Kurztitel: Nephrocystin signaling) (Project Head Hildebrandt, Friedhelm )
• B07 - The role of planar cell polarity proteins in renal development (Project Head Walz, Gerd )
• B08 - Regulation of lateral root development in Arabidopsis thaliana (Project Head Palme, Klaus )
• B09 - The role of nephrocystin-3 for celia-mediated signaling and determination of left/right asymmetry (Project Head Omran, Heymut )
• B10 - Development of the Glomerular Filter (Project Heads Huber, Tobias B. ;  Kramer-Zucker, Albrecht )
• C01 - Wnt-dependent and Wnt-independent Regulation of Organogenesis by LEF1 (Project Head Grosschedl, Rudolf )
• C02 - Control of adipogenesis by the signal-regulated INHAT-repressor NIR (Project Head Schüle, Roland )
• C03 - Notch signalling in hematopoiesis: The role of RBP-Jk-assosiated transcriptional cofactors in lymphopoiesis (Project Head Borggrefe, Tilman )
• C05 - Protein interactions and modifications determine the activity of a major regulator of neural transcription, the POU protein UNC-86 (Project Head Baumeister, Ralf )
• N02 - N02: Developmental biology involving mechanisms of pattern formation, signaling and differentiation in embryogenesis and organogenesis of animal or plant models (Project Head Pyrowolakis, Giorgos )
• Z01 - Central tasks of the Collaborative Research Centre (Project Head Driever, Wolfgang )
• Z02 - Central facility - In vivo Imaging (Life Imaging Center) (Project Heads Driever, Wolfgang ;  Nitschke, Roland )

• Applicant Institution: Albert-Ludwigs-Universität Freiburg
• Participating Institution: The Hebrew University of Jerusalem; Faculty of Medicine; Department of Anatomy and Cell Biology; (aufgelöst); Max-Planck-Institut für Immunbiologie und Epigenetik; Universitätsklinikum Freiburg der Albert-Ludwigs-Universität Freiburg
• Spokesperson: Professor Dr. Wolfgang Driever