The human crumbs homolog has recently been identified by others, and it was shown that mutations in this gene cause blindness , adding significance to our work. The further analysis of Crumbs function in Drosophila eye development is likely to shed light on the mechansims of Crumbs-related human pathologies. In recent years, - We have further analyzed the function of Crumbs and other factors in epithelial differentiation that has let to new insights into the mechanisms that contribute to epithelial polarization. In particular, we have characterized the mechanisms that contribute to the formations of the follicular epithelium during Drosophila oogenesis. Genetic control of cell migration.
Cell migration is one of the most prominent processes in animal development.
Although cell migration has been intensely studied in cell culture and animal systems the mechanisms that are involved in cell migration in living embryos are still not well understood. We now have initiated a genetic screen to identify genes involved in blood cell migration. We have also worked on describing normal development of Drosophila as an important prerequisite for conducting functional studies.