Mary Halloran

Research Description:
Our research is aimed at understanding the molecular and cellular mechanisms that regulate axon growth, branching and pathfinding during development of neuronal morphology and circuit connections. We are particularly interested in the processes of axonal transport of organelles and vesicular cargo, and regulation of the neuronal cytoskeleton. Because of their complex and highly polarized morphology, neurons are especially dependent on high fidelity axonal transport/cargo trafficking. Many neurodegenerative diseases have defects in the machinery of cargo transport. We use zebrafish as a model system, which allows us to image axon growth, transport and localization of cellular cargos and microtubule dynamics in neurons developing in live, intact embryos. In addition, we can assay animal behavior in larvae and adults to assess circuit function. To model human neurodegenerative disease, we generate zebrafish mutants for genes known to be disease causing. Using our imaging approaches, we can define their precise cellular functions and effects of gene loss on the dynamic processes of axon growth, cargo transport and microtubule organization.

Representative Publications:
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Haynes E.M., Burnett K.H., He J., Jean-Pierre M., Jarzyna M., Eliceiri K.W., Huisken J., and Halloran, M.C. (2022) KLC4 shapes axon arbors during development and mediates adult behavior. eLife 11:e74270. DOI: https://doi.org/10.7554/eLife.74270

Miller A.H. and Halloran M.C. (2022) Mechanistic insights from animal models of Neurofibromatosis type 1 cognitive impairment. Disease Models and Mechanisms Aug 1;15(8):dmm049422.

Osorio-Mendez D., Miller A.H., Begeman I.J., Kurth A., Hagle R., Rolph D., Dickson A.L., Chen C-H., Halloran M.C., Poss K.D., and Kang J. (2022) Voltage-gated sodium channel, scn8a, is required for innervation and regeneration of amputated adult zebrafish fins. PNAS Jul 12; 119(28):e2200342119

Alassaf M. and Halloran M.C. (2021) Pregnancy-associated plasma protein-aa regulates endoplasmic reticulum-mitochondria associations. eLife 10:e59687. DOI: 10.7554/eLife.59687

Kita AM, Swider ZT, Erofeev I, Halloran MC, Goryachev AB, Bement WM. (2019) Spindle-F-actin interactions in mitotic spindles in an intact vertebrate epithelium. Mol Biol Cell. 30(14):1645-1654.

Gurung S, Asante E, Hummel D, Williams A, Feldman-Schultz O, Halloran MC, Sittaramane V, Chandrasekhar A. (2018) Distinct roles for the cell adhesion molecule Contactin2 in the development and function of neural circuits in zebrafish. Mech Dev. 152:1-12

Lee TJ, Lee JW, Haynes EM, Eliceiri KW and Halloran MC (2017). The kinesin adaptor Calsyntenin-1 organizes microtubule polarity and regulates dynamics during sensory axon arbor development. Front. Cell. Neurosci. 11:107. doi: 10.3389/fncel.2017.00107 Ponomareva, O.Y.,

Eliceiri, K.W. and Halloran, M.C. (2016) Charcot-Marie-Tooth 2b associated Rab7 mutations cause axon growth and guidance defects during vertebrate sensory neuron development. Neural Development Jan 20, 11:2. PMCID: PMC4721196

Ponomareva, O.Y., Holmen, I.C., Sperry, A.J., Eliceiri, K.W., and Halloran, M.C. (2014) Calsyntenin-1 regulates axon branching and endosomal trafficking during sensory neuron development in vivo. J Neurosci 34:9235-9248. PMCID: PMC4087204

Clay, M.R. and Halloran, M.C. (2014) Cadherin-6 promotes neural crest cell detachment via F-actin regulation and influences active Rho distribution during epithelial to mesenchymal transition. Development 141:2506-2515. PMCID: PMC4050695