Drapeau, Pierre

As a model for the formation and function of CNS circuits, we are studying the development of the locomotor network in manipulable zebrafish embryos by combining cellular neurophysiology and molecular genetics. We record and image the activity patterns of identified neurons during development in wild-type and genetically modified embryos, including by transgenic over-expression, upon antisense knockdown and in mutations that affect locomotion. Our goal is to elucidate the molecular choreography of locomotor network formation and function. We are also using the zebrafish as a model for the validation of mutations and screening of potential therapeutics for human genes linked by genomic analyses to neurological and psychiatric developmental disorders.