2009 Scott Lecture- Matthew Scott - Stanford University

Communicating with Hedgehogs: Signaling in Development & Disease

Matthew Scott
Professor of Developmental Biology, Genetics, and Bioengineering
Howard Hughes Medical Institute Investigator
Stanford University School of Medicine

Animal development is controlled by an exquisite interplay of regulators that shape cells and control the temporal and spatial activation of genes. Signaling systems that evolved more than half a billion years ago allow cell-cell communication events that lead to proper formation of tissues and organs. Damage to such signaling systems can lead to birth defects, cancer, and neurodegeneration. Hedgehog (Hh) signaling, first discovered in flies, is employed in the formation of nearly all human tissues and organs. Mutations affecting Hh signaling components can lead to cancer and birth defects, including the most common human cancer, basal cell carcinoma of the skin. Much remains to be learned about mechanisms through which the Hh protein signal is received and interpreted, and how Hh signaling relates to normal development and cancer. The talk will focus on mechanisms of Hh signal transduction, particularly in the context of cerebellum development and tumors, including the role of an antenna for the signal and gene expression events governed by the signal.

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This event is co-sponsored by the Integrated Graduate Program’s Lectures in the Life Sciences.