Dr Massimo Hilliard

Molecular and Cellular Neurobiology Laboratory

Short biography

Research directions

Current collaborations

Selected publications

Contact

Short biography

Dr Massimo A. Hilliard received his PhD in Biological Chemistry and Molecular Biology in 2001 from the University of Naples, Italy. His experimental work, performed at the Institute of Genetics and Biophysics of the CNR (Italian National Council of Research), was aimed at understanding the neuronal and genetic basis of aversive taste behavior (bitter taste) in C. elegans.

During his first postdoc at the University of California, San Diego, using the Ca2+ indicator Cameleon he published the first direct visualisation of chemosensory activity in C. elegans neurons. In his second postdoctoral work at the University of California, San Francisco and at The Rockefeller University, he switched from neuronal function to neuronal development, focusing in particular on how neurons establish and orient their polarity with respect to extracellular cues.

Research Directions [top]

We use C. elegans as a genetic model system to study neuronal development. There are currently three lines of research in the lab, and PhD projects and/or postdoctoral positions are available in each topic.

1. Axonal degeneration
How neurons can maintain their axonal structure and function over time is not well understood. Axonal degeneration is a critical and common feature of many peripheral neuropathies, neurodegenerative diseases and nerve injuries. The genetic factors and the cellular mechanisms that prevent axonal degeneration under normal conditions and that trigger it under pathological ones are still largely unknown. We aim to use C. elegans genetics to identify the molecules and the mechanisms that control these processes.

2. Axonal regeneration
How some axons can regenerate after nerve damage while others cannot is a crucial question in neurobiology, and the answers will be of great value for the medical handling of neurodegenerative diseases and of traumatic nerve injuries. Largely unknown are the molecules and the mechanisms underlying this important biological process. In C. elegans, a new laser-based technology allows single neuron axotomy in living animals, and axonal regeneration can now be visualised in real-time and tackled with a genetic approach. Our goal is to identify the genes and conditions that control this fascinating process.

3. Neuronal polarity and axonal guidance
Neurons are highly polarized cells with distinct domains such as axons and dendrites. The polarity of a developing neuron determines the precise exit point of its axon as well as the initial trajectory of axon outgrowth. Understanding how neurons establish and orient polarity with respect to extracellular cues is an important and challenging problem in neurobiology. We wish to understand how different secreted cues regulate the orientation of neuronal polarity and axonal guidance in vivo.

 

Current collaborations [top]

Prof. Adela Ben-Yakar,
University of Texas, at Austin

Dr. Paolo Bazzicalupo,
Institute of Genetics and Biophysics, Naples, Italy

Selected publications (out of a total of 10) [top]

Hilliard, M.A. and Bargmann, C.I. Wnt signals and Frizzled activity orient anterior-posterior axon outgrowth in C. elegans. Developmental Cell, 2006, 10: 379-390.

Hilliard, M.A., Apicella, A.J., Kerr, R., Suzuki, H., Bazzicalupo, P. and Schafer, W.R. In vivo imaging of C. elegans ASH neurons: cellular response and adaptation to chemical repellents. EMBO J., 2005, 24: 63-72.

Hilliard, M.A., Bergamasco, C., Arbucci, S., Plasterk, R.H.A. and Bazzicalupo, P. Worms taste bitter: ASH neurons, QUI-1, GPA-3 and ODR-3 mediate quinine avoidance in Caenorhabditis elegans. EMBO J., 2004, 23: 1101-1111.

Contact details [top]

Lab Head: Dr. Massimo A. Hilliard
Contact: m.hilliard@uq.edu.au
Tel: (+61) 7 3346 6390