Hime Lab ~ Drosophila Genetics Laboratory

Principal investigator: Dr Gary Hime

• Major projects
• Stem cells
• Oncogenes
• Publications
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Welcome to the Hime Lab

Our interests lie with how organisms co-ordinate cell division and differentiation to form tissues and organs. Most cells in a developing organism receive signals from neighbouring tissues, or via systemic signals, that influence their growth and differentiation. Our work involves identifying components of signalling pathways and determining their functional interactions with known signal transduction mechanisms.

The long tradition of cell biology and genetics in the vinegar fly, Drosophila melanogaster , has given us a wealth of tools to investigate function of cell signalling pathways. Recently Drosophila has realized an expanding role in cancer research with the identification of homologues of human oncogenes and mutations that result in tumour growth or over-proliferation. Genetic modifier screens have allowed the identification of genes that interact with tumourogenic mutations, providing a method to uncover new regulators of signal transduction.

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