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| Neuroscience
Homepage > Faculty
List > McLoon S |
Steven C. McLoon, Ph.D.
Professor, Department of Neuroscience
mcloons@umn.edu
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Developmental neurobiology.
The primary aim of research in the McLoon laboratory is to understand
the cellular mechanisms responsible for development of the vertebrate
nervous system with an emphasis on the visual system. The projects
currently underway in the laboratory have three main focuses. First
is to identify the mechanisms responsible for determination of cell
fate in the developing retina. The aim of current work is to understand
how the competence of progenitor cells changes during development
so as to allow the initial onset of cell differentiation and later
the termination of production of specific cell types (e.g. Silva
et al., 2002 & 2003). The second area of work is to understand how
the pattern of axonal connections develops between the retina in
the eye and the central visual centers in the brain. This process
has two steps. In the first step, retinal ganglion cells form a
rough pattern of connections, which appears to be guided by certain
molecules that encode position in the retina and brain. The second
step involves refinement of the pattern of connections, such that
aberrant connections are corrected or the cells giving rise to these
connections are eliminated. The laboratory is working to identify
the mechanisms involved in both steps of this process (e.g. Wu et
al., 2001 and Jurney et al., 2002). The third area of work is new
to the laboratory. Stem cells are being used in an effort to replace
certain cell types in the retina as a potential clinical therapy
for the most common types of blindness. Stem cells are being coaxed
to recapitulate aspects of normal retinal development by treatment
of the cells with certain factors and by introducing certain genes
to the cells.
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Selected Publications
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Silva AO, Ercole CE, McLoon SC
Regulation of ganglion cell production by Notch signaling during retinal development.
J Neurobiol. 2003 Feb 15;54(3):511-24 |
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Jurney WM, Gallo G, Letourneau PC, McLoon SC
Rac1-mediated endocytosis during ephrin-A2- and semaphorin 3A-induced growth cone collapse.
J Neurosci. 2002 Jul 15;22(14):6019-28 |
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Silva AO, Ercole CE, McLoon SC
Plane of cell cleavage and numb distribution during cell division relative to cell differentiation in the developing retina.
J Neurosci. 2002 Sep 1;22(17):7518-25 |
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Gallo G, Ernst AF, McLoon SC, Letourneau
PC.
Transient PKA activity is required for initiation but not maintenance
of BDNF-mediated protection from nitric oxide-induced growth-cone
collapse.
J
Neurosci 2002 Jun 15;22(12):5016-23 |
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Wu HH, Selski DJ, El-Fakahany EE, McLoon SC.
The role of nitric oxide in development of topographic precision in
the retinotectal projection of chick.
J
Neurosci 2001 Jun 15;21(12):4318-25 |
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Ernst AF, Gallo G, Letourneau PC, McLoon SC.
Stabilization of growing retinal axons by the combined signaling of
nitric oxide and brain-derived neurotrophic factor.
J
Neurosci 2000 Feb 15;20(4):1458-69 |
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