Gene expression during development and ageing

Abstract

Time plays an important role in life. Time is needed to develop from a fertilized oocyte to an adult individual; after adulthood is reached limited time remains for a (healthy) life. This thesis focuses on the complex relationship between organism and time, particularly the relationship between time and gene expression. In chapter 2, a time dependent mechanism which controls gene expression with high precision is discussed. Chapter 3 describes a protocol to measure gene expression levels with spatial resolution in C. elegans. In chapter 4 and 5 this technique is applied to the larval stages and ageing mutants, respectively.