Institute of Zoology SAS
Topic
Roles of endocrine and neuroendocrine cells in model species of arthropods
PhD. program
Zoology
Year of admission
2025
Name of the supervisor
Ing. Ladislav Roller, PhD.
Contact:
Receiving school
Univerzita Komenského v Bratislave
Annotation
Neuropeptides are evolutionarily conserved and extremely diverse molecules that play an important role in the control of development, reproduction, behaviour and other physiological processes. In arthropods, there are about 50 different types of regulatory peptides that are produced in specific neurons and endocrine cells. Knowledge about these cells is insufficient and new types of peptidergic cells are still being discovered. In this work, we use immunohistochemistry and molecular biology methods to identify peptidergic cells and the signalling molecules produced in these cells. We use transgenic approaches in combination with physiological and behavioural assays to elucidate the functions of specific neuropeptides in model species of arthropods, mainly in the silkworm Bombyx mori and the sheep tick Ixodes ricinus.