knowledge that disruption of EGFR function interferes with normal development of the palate, it may be possible for scientists to develop therapies for cleft palate. However, it is believed that the majority of clefts can be attributed to a combination of genetic and environmental factors, which may make it difficult to create an effective therapy.

Co-investigators on the study are Paivi J. Miettinen, former postdoctoral fellow in the UCSF Department of Growth & Development, now an assistant professor at the University of Helsinki; Jennie R. Chin, research specialist, UCSF Department of Anatomy; Lillian Shum, staff scientist, and Harold C. Slavkin, director, both of the National Institute of Arthritis and Musculoskeletal and Skin Diseases, NIH; and Charles F. Shuler, professor, Center for Craniofacial Molecular Biology, University of Southern California.

The study was supported by grants from the National Institutes of Health and the Academy of Finland.

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Contact: James Larkin
jlarkin@pubaff.ucsf.edu
415-750-6633
University of California - San Francisco
1-May-1999

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