Geoffrey Cook PhD
Associate University Lecturer
Tel: +44 (0)1223 333760, Fax: +44 (0)1223 333786, E-mail: gmwc@mole.bio.cam.ac.uk
Development and repair of the nervous system
Growth cone repulsion is an important mechanism controlling axon growth. During
development it guides axons by excluding them from "no-go" areas
in the embryo. Following injury to the adult brain it may also block axon
regeneration, with serious clinical consequences. Our laboratory is investigating
3 axon-repulsive systems where the underlying mechanisms can be studied at
the molecular level. First, we are characterizing glycoproteins on the surface
of chick somite cells that repel axons and that create the segmented pattern
of spinal nerves during development. Second, we have identified repulsive
proteins secreted by the embryonic notochord that orient primary sensory
axons in the dorso-ventral axis of the embryo. We have also purified a repulsive
protein in the grey matter of the adult avian and mammalian brain; we hypothesize
that such proteins have evolved to regulate synaptic plasticity, perhaps
contributing to CNS regenerative failure. Besides elucidating the molecular
biology of these molecules and their receptors, an important clinical aim
will be to interfere with their inhibitory action using models of brain and spinal cord injury, to see whether improved functional
regeneration can be achieved.
Colleagues:
Dr Roger Keynes (Department of Anatomy)
Dr Kelly Kuan (Research Associate)
Dr Liz Muir (Research Associate)
Mr Dan Hughes (Graduate Student)
Mr Spike Lo (Graduate Student)
Ms Julie Ghosh (Graduate Student)
Mrs Christine Turner (Technician)
Mrs Keily Littlefield (Technician)
Main Collaborators:
David Tannahill (Sanger Institute, Cambridge)
James Fawcett (Cambridge Centre for Brain Repair)
Claudio Stern (University College, London)
Elizabeta Mukaetova-Ladinska (Newcastle)
Adrian Pini (King’s College, London)
Kunimasa Ohta (Kumamoto University, Japan)
Main Sources of Funding: MRC
Selected Publications:
Keynes RJ, Tannahill D, Morgenstern DA, Johnson AR, Cook GMW & Pini
A (1997) Surround-repulsion of sensory axons in higher vertebrate embryos.
Neuron 18, 889-897
Cook GMW, Tannahill D & Keynes RJ (1998) Axon guidance to and from choice points. Current Opinion in Neurobiology 8, 64-72
Ohta K, Tannahill D, Yoshida K, Johnson AR, Cook GMW & Keynes RJ (1999) Embryonic lens repels retinal ganglion cell axons. Developmental Biology 211, 124-132
Vermeren MM, Cook GMW, Johnson AR, Keynes RJ & Tannahill D (2000) Spinal nerve segmentation in the chick embryo: analysis of distinct axon-repulsive systems. Developmental Biology 225, 241-25.