Uso de un modelo no animal en el estudio de enfermedades raras

The social amoeba Dictyostelium discoideum is a non-conventional cell and developmental biomedical model. The similarity of the genes at sequence and functional levels between Dictyostelium and animals, and its great easy of use in the laboratory makes of Dictyostelium an extraordinary model to address the basic principles of certain diseases.  The use of non-mammalian models is nowadays important due to the europe's interest to reduce the number of animals in experimental research (the RRR initiative). Specifically we are focussed in the study of two neurodegenerative rare diseases, chorea-acanthocytosis and BPAN and the role that autophagy and protein trafficking play in the cytopathology of these diseases.  We also combine Dictyostelium with the use of mammalian cellular models. The projects will allow the students to gain basic competencies in molecular and cellular biology in the context of rare neurodegenerative diseases. Diverse techniques will be applied such as DNA cloning, cell handling and transformation, confocal microscopy, protein analysis, etc.