Jove
Visualize
Contact Us
JoVE
x logofacebook logolinkedin logoyoutube logo
ABOUT JoVE
OverviewLeadershipBlogJoVE Help Center
AUTHORS
Publishing ProcessEditorial BoardScope & PoliciesPeer ReviewFAQSubmit
LIBRARIANS
TestimonialsSubscriptionsAccessResourcesLibrary Advisory BoardFAQ
RESEARCH
JoVE JournalMethods CollectionsJoVE Encyclopedia of ExperimentsArchive
EDUCATION
JoVE CoreJoVE BusinessJoVE Science EducationJoVE Lab ManualFaculty Resource CenterFaculty Site
Terms & Conditions of Use
Privacy Policy
Policies

Related Concept Videos

Genetic Screens02:46

Genetic Screens

Genetic screens are tools used to identify genes and mutations responsible for phenotypes of interest. Genetic screens help identify individuals or a group of people at risk of developing  genetic diseases and help them with early intervention, targeted therapy, and reproductive options.
Forward genetic screens
Forward or “classical” genetic screens involve creating random mutations in an organism’s DNA using radiation, mutagens, or insertion of additional bases, which result in visible changes...
Interactions Between Signaling Pathways01:19

Interactions Between Signaling Pathways

Signaling cascades usually lack linearity. Multiple pathways interact and regulate one another, allowing cells to integrate and respond to diverse environmental stimuli.
Convergence and divergence, and cross-talk between signaling pathways
Two distinct signaling pathways can converge on a single functional unit, which may either be a single protein or a complex of proteins. The response is either functionally distinct or synergistic between the two pathways but different from the response...
Neural Regulation01:37

Neural Regulation

Digestion begins with a cephalic phase that prepares the digestive system to receive food. When our brain processes visual or olfactory information about food, it triggers impulses in the cranial nerves innervating the salivary glands and stomach to prepare for food.
Regulation of Expression Occurs at Multiple Steps02:24

Regulation of Expression Occurs at Multiple Steps

Gene expression can be regulated at almost every step from gene to protein. Transcription is the step that is most commonly regulated. This involves the binding of proteins to short regulatory sequences on the DNA. This association can either promote or inhibit the transcription of a gene associated with the respective sequence.
Transcription results in the generation of precursor (pre-mRNA) that consists of both exons and introns, which needs further processing before being translated to a...
Regulation of Expression Occurs at Multiple Steps02:24

Regulation of Expression Occurs at Multiple Steps

Gene expression can be regulated at almost every step from gene to protein. Transcription is the step that is most commonly regulated. This involves the binding of proteins to short regulatory sequences on the DNA. This association can either promote or inhibit the transcription of a gene associated with the respective sequence.
Transcription results in the generation of precursor (pre-mRNA) that consists of both exons and introns, which needs further processing before being translated to a...
Neuroplasticity01:01

Neuroplasticity

Neuroplasticity reflects the brain's remarkable capacity to adapt and evolve, responding dynamically to learning, experiences, or injury by reorganizing its neural circuitry. This reorganization involves creating new neural connections and refining old ones through a series of biological processes that contribute to the brain's lifelong development and adaptability.

You might also read

Related Articles

Articles linked to this work by shared authors, journal, and citation graph.

Sort by
Same author

Octopamine signaling regulates the intracellular pattern of the presynaptic active zone scaffold within Drosophila mushroom body neurons.

PLoS biology·2025
Same author

Hemilineage-specific deployment of the pro-apoptotic RHG genes reaper and grim during neurogenesis sculpts segment and sex-specific neural network composition in Drosophila.

Development (Cambridge, England)·2025
Same author

Maintenance of mitochondrial integrity in midbrain dopaminergic neurons governed by a conserved developmental transcription factor.

Nature communications·2022
Same author

Cortical perfusion as assessed with contrast-enhanced ultrasound is lower in patients with chronic kidney disease than in healthy subjects but increases under low salt conditions.

Nephrology, dialysis, transplantation : official publication of the European Dialysis and Transplant Association - European Renal Association·2021
Same author

A Systematic Nomenclature for the Drosophila Ventral Nerve Cord.

Neuron·2020
Same author

Extensive and diverse patterns of cell death sculpt neural networks in insects.

eLife·2020

Related Experiment Video

Updated: May 16, 2026

Using Caenorhabditis elegans to Screen for Tissue-Specific Chaperone Interactions
06:55

Using Caenorhabditis elegans to Screen for Tissue-Specific Chaperone Interactions

Published on: June 7, 2020

An interaction screen identifies headcase as a regulator of large-scale pruning.

Nicolas Loncle1, Darren W Williams

  • 1Medical Research Council Centre for Developmental Neurobiology, King's College London, London SE1 1UL, United Kingdom. nicolas.loncle@kcl.ac.uk

The Journal of Neuroscience : the Official Journal of the Society for Neuroscience
|December 1, 2012
PubMed
Summary

Researchers identified headcase (hdc) as a crucial gene for neuronal pruning in Drosophila. This gene is essential for dendrite severing during development, revealing a new pathway in nervous system formation.

More Related Videos

Experience-Dependent Remodeling of Juvenile Brain Olfactory Sensory Neuron Synaptic Connectivity in an Early-Life Critical Period
07:13

Experience-Dependent Remodeling of Juvenile Brain Olfactory Sensory Neuron Synaptic Connectivity in an Early-Life Critical Period

Published on: March 1, 2024

Inherent Dynamics Visualizer, an Interactive Application for Evaluating and Visualizing Outputs from a Gene Regulatory Network Inference Pipeline
10:44

Inherent Dynamics Visualizer, an Interactive Application for Evaluating and Visualizing Outputs from a Gene Regulatory Network Inference Pipeline

Published on: December 7, 2021

Related Experiment Videos

Last Updated: May 16, 2026

Using Caenorhabditis elegans to Screen for Tissue-Specific Chaperone Interactions
06:55

Using Caenorhabditis elegans to Screen for Tissue-Specific Chaperone Interactions

Published on: June 7, 2020

Experience-Dependent Remodeling of Juvenile Brain Olfactory Sensory Neuron Synaptic Connectivity in an Early-Life Critical Period
07:13

Experience-Dependent Remodeling of Juvenile Brain Olfactory Sensory Neuron Synaptic Connectivity in an Early-Life Critical Period

Published on: March 1, 2024

Inherent Dynamics Visualizer, an Interactive Application for Evaluating and Visualizing Outputs from a Gene Regulatory Network Inference Pipeline
10:44

Inherent Dynamics Visualizer, an Interactive Application for Evaluating and Visualizing Outputs from a Gene Regulatory Network Inference Pipeline

Published on: December 7, 2021

Area of Science:

  • Neuroscience
  • Developmental Biology
  • Genetics

Background:

  • Neuronal pruning is vital for developing functional neural circuits.
  • In Drosophila, class IV dendritic arborization sensory neurons (ddaC) undergo pruning mediated by ecdysone.
  • The molecular regulators of this developmental degeneration remain largely unidentified.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To discover novel genes involved in the large-scale pruning of ddaC neuron dendrites.
  • To elucidate the molecular mechanisms governing developmental dendrite degeneration.

Main Methods:

  • Utilized Drosophila forward genetics for a large-scale genetic interaction screen.
  • Employed in vivo imaging of ddaC neurons to observe pruning dynamics.
  • Conducted epistasis experiments to position newly identified genes within known pathways.

Main Results:

  • Identified headcase (hdc) as a novel gene essential for dendrite pruning.
  • Demonstrated that hdc is expressed in sensory neurons undergoing remodeling before metamorphosis.
  • Showed hdc acts cell-autonomously to control dendrite severing, the initial pruning phase.

Conclusions:

  • Headcase (hdc) is a newly discovered, evolutionarily conserved gene critical for neuronal pruning.
  • hdc functions cell-autonomously in the initial phase of dendrite severing.
  • hdc represents a key component of a novel pathway acting downstream of ecdysone signaling in Drosophila development.