[Seminar] "The role of topoisomerase II beta in retinal development" by Prof. Li Cai

[Speaker]

Prof. Li Cai

Department of Biomedical Engineering

Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey

[Abstract]

The Cai lab focuses on the mechanism of gene regulation in stem and progenitor cells using an integrative approaches combining cellular and molecular biology, developmental biology, genomics and bioinformatics.  In this seminar, I will focus on the role of topoisomerase II beta (Top2b) in retinal development. Top2b is an enzyme that alters the topologic states of DNA during transcription. Our study show that Top2b deletion in early retinal progenitor cells causes severe defects in neural differentiation and affects cell survival in all retinal cell types. Bulk and single-cell RNA-seq analyses reveal an important role of Top2b in regulating the photoreceptor gene-regulatory network. Our study establish an essential role for Top2b in the late stage of photoreceptor differentiation and maturation.