Lynn M. Riddiford

lmr@zoology.washington.edu
Professor, Department of Biology

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We study the neuroendocrine control of molting, metamorphosis, and reproduction in insects, concentrating primarily on Lepidoptera with some studies on Drosophila. Presently we are studying the cellular and molecular basis of the action of juvenile hormone (JH) in preventing metamorphosis in response to ecdysone and on the molecular actions of the molting hormone ecdysone in both orchestrating the molting process and causing the reprogramming necessary for the change from the larva to the pupa. Our main focus is on the epidermis which forms the cuticle or exoskeleton of the insect, but we also study the hormonal effects on development of the nervous system, particularly the eye and associated optic lobe and the neuronal effects on the remodeling of the muscle during metamorphosis, using both the tobacco hornworm, Manduca sexta, and Drosophila melanogaster. A second interest is in the developmental and hormonal regulation of neuropeptide hormone gene expression, specifically eclosion hormone and prothoracicotropic hormone.