Stefan Thor
I have studied the development of the central nervous system (CNS) since 1988. My work has focused on two aspects: the specification of different cell types in the CNS, and the control of proliferation. I have used several different model systems during these studies: Drosophila (fruit flies), zebrafish, chick and mouse. I have chosen to conduct my research in different countries, starting out with my PhD in Sweden, followed by postdoctoral training and an Assistant Professorship in the US, back to Sweden for my Professorship, and now in Australia as a Professor. My current research is focused upon the development and function of the mammalian hypothalamus; a small structure in the centre of the human brain, weighing in at a mere 4 g of the total 1,4 kg of an adult human brain. In spite of its small size, the hypothalamus controls a wide range of bodily functions, such as energy and fluid balance, thermoregulation, sleep-wake states, stress responses, growth and reproductive behaviours, as well as emotional and social behaviours. The hypothalamus can perform this plethora of complex functions because of its staggering neuronal diversity, with hundreds of unique neuronal cell types that communicate with many areas of the brain, as well as with the vascular and endocrine systems. There are major knowledge gaps in our understanding of how the extraordinary cellular diversity present in the mature hypothalamus emerges from a restricted pool of neural stem cells in the hypothalamic anlage, and our studies aims to help resolve the underlying molecular genetic pathways.
Abstracts this author is presenting: