Development of Insect Neuronal Cultures
PI(s): Bloomquist, Jeffrey R, Paulson, Sally L
Investigators:
Abstract: Relatively little work has been done on the development of monolayer neuronal cell cultures of invertebrates. This project aims to develop a simple technique for producing large amounts of insect neuronal tissue from an immortal cell line.
Description:
A technique for producing large amounts of insect nervous tissue would be a boon to insecticide discovery research, because it would obviate the need to dissect large numbers of insects, or to clone every target site of interest and express it in a cell line, which is expensive. Sally Paulson and I have shown that undifferentiated Lepidopteran ovarian cell lines can be induced to grow elongated processes and form presumptive synapses reminiscent of nervous tissue when exposed to insect hormone (ecdysone) and a sodium channel modulator, such as veratridine. Although the characterization of these cells is oongoing, we know they express voltage-sensitive sodium channels that are particular to neurons, and this nerve membrane macromolecule is a known insecticide target site. This work resulted in a full patent application filed with the U.S. patent and trademark office, and we are currently developing these cells as an in vitro platform for insecticide screening.
Commodities:
Resources: Physiology Laboratories
Disciplines: Physiology
Audiences: Agribusiness, Graduate Students, Researchers
