Transcription Factor ICER: Regulation in the Rat Photoneuroendocrine System

Development and survival of living organisms are tightly coupled to their ability to react appropriately to exogenous signals (Darwin, 1880; Aschoff, 1981). Environmental stimuli are perceived by membrane bound receptors, amplified by means of signal transduction cascades and finally translated into a specific gene expression. Receptor-stimulated signal transduction pathways regulate outgrowth, plasticity and survival in neuronal as well as in neuroendocrine tissues (Collins et al., 1992; Karin, 1992). Neuroendocrine cell systems in particular represent excellent model systems to explore the temporal course and tissue-specificity of gene expression during ontogeny or following stimulus perception.