Robert E. Maxson

Ph.D.

Professor

Keck School of Medicine
Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology

This laboratory is interested in patterning mechanisms that underlie mammalian development. The current focus is the Msx gene family, a set of three closely related homeobox-containing genes that have important roles in organogenesis, particularly in the development of the skull, eye, tooth and ear. They have demonstrated that individuals affected with a disorder of skull development, Boston craniosynostosis, bear a mutated form of Msx2. Further, they have used transgenic approaches to recreate the craniosynostosis phenotype in mice, and we have produced a targeted inactivation of Msx2. They are now using these mice to understand the function of Msx2 in the patterning of the skull and teeth. Finally, tests of Msx gene function at the cellular and molecular levels are being carried out which have so far revealed that the Msx2 gene functions in the BMP pathway and that its target genes include the gap junction gene, connexin 43, and genes encoding the TGF-beta binding proteoglycans, decorin and biglycan. Drs. Maxson, Snead, Sucov and Liu collaborate on scientific projects centered on Msx pathways.

 

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