Seth S. Blair
Position title: Professor, Department of Integrative Biology
Email: ssblair@wisc.edu
Phone: (608) 262-1345
Department:
Integrative Biology
Education:
Ph.D. in Zoology, University of California-Berkeley, Berkeley, CA, USA
Postdoctoral in Zoology, University of Washington, Seattle, WA, USA
Research Description:
Over the last two decades my laboratory has successfully used the powerful genetic and molecular advantages provided by Drosophila to analyze the patterning mechanisms underlying the development of the Drosophila wing. Using support from NIH and NSF, we have dissected the mechanisms underlying both the lineage–based cell fate decisions of compartmental lineage restrictions, and the signaling–based mechanisms that regulate cell determination and growth control in Drosophila and other animals. We have examined the roles of known signaling pathways (especially Wnt/Wingless, Notch, Hedgehog, and BMP), identified new extracellular modulators of these pathways (e.g. the Hedgehog and Wnt modulator Shifted/WIF–1 and the BMP modulators Cv–2/BMPER, Cv–Tsg2 and Cv–d), and identified and characterized a new mechanism of signaling mediated by the protocadherins Fat and Dachsous that regulates planar cell polarity and Hippo–based growth control. My laboratory currently utilizes a wide range of techniques, from classical and molecular genetics to in vitro analyses of protein interaction to binding partner discovery.
Research Key Words:
Developmental Signaling, Patterning and Growth Control, Drosophila