Panula, Pertti

The group is interested in elucidating how the modulatory aminergic and peptidergic systems regulate important behaviors in vertebrates. Defects in these systems are responsble symptoms in major neurological and psychiatric diseases, e.g. Parkinson's disease, schizophrenia and depression. New neuropeptides and their receptors can be important regulators of aminergic (e.g. noradrenergic, dopaminergic and histaminergic) systems.
To elucidate the role of histamine in development and brain functions, a multidisciplinary study was initiated in zebrafish. In adult fish, histamine is highly concentrated in the brain, as evidenced by specific immunocytochemical methods and HPLC. During development, histamine is first detected in the brain at about 85 h post fertilization, and at 90 h, immunoreactive fibers can be seen in the telencephalon. One of the prominent target areas of hypothalamic histamine neurons in zebrafish is optic tectum. Mutations affecting optic pathfinding may thus be useful in determining the role of histamine in development and regeneration.

We are interested in brain neuronal systems at the time when the zebrafish behavior is already possible to analyze using automated systems rather than the very early larval systems. The pathways of all major aminergic cell groups were mapped using double-staining confocal and 2-photon imaging of wholemounts and thick slices of zf brain, and a 3D imaging system was developed for fruther use of mutants. Automated behavioral assays were also developed to evaluate the usefulness of the zf model in studies on degenerative diseases. These systems are currently used to analyze the significance of newly identified genes.