ERC FUNDED PROJECTS

Multicellularity in plants evolved independently from other eukaryotes and presents a unique, alternative way how to deal with challenges of life. A major plant developmental module is the directional transport for the plant hormone auxin. The crucial components are PIN auxin transporters, whose polar, subcellular localization determines directionality of auxin flow through tissues. PIN-dependent auxin transport represents a unique model for studying the functional link between basic cellular processes, such as vesicle trafficking and cell polarity, and their developmental outcome at the level of the multicellular organism. Despite decades of intensive research, the classical approaches in the established models are approaching their limits and many crucial questions remain unsolved, in particular related to PIN structure, regulatory motifs and evolutionary origin I propose to start a new direction in my research using an evolutionary perspective. This promises to overcome current limitations and provides not only (i) interesting insights into PIN evolution and diversification, but also (ii) a unique opportunity to study how evolutionary conserved cellular mechanisms of e.g. endocytic trafficking evolved specific plug-ins to make them subject to plant-specific regulations. The characterization of (iii) prokaryotic PIN origin will provide a so urgently needed (iv) entry into PIN structural studies. To achieve these goals, we will also establish novel (v) genetic and cell biological models in the ancestral lineage of the land plants that will be of a great use for any plant evolutionary studies. The intellectual and methodological challenges of such interdisciplinary strategy combining several lower and higher plant models are obvious, but our preliminary results at several fronts promise its feasibility and success to gain deeper understanding of exciting questions on evolution and mechanisms behind the coordination and specification of developmental programs.

2 410 292 €

Start date: 2018-01-01, End date: 2022-12-31

While access to 3D-printing technology becomes ubiquitous and provides revolutionary possibilities for fabricating complex, functional, multi-material objects with stunning properties, its potential impact is currently significantly limited due to the lack of efficient and intuitive methods for content creation. Existing tools are usually restricted to expert users, have been developed based on the capabilities of traditional manufacturing processes, and do not sufficiently take fabrication constraints into account. Scientifically, we are facing the fundamental challenge that existing simulation techniques and design approaches for predicting the physical properties of materials and objects at the resolution of modern 3D printers are too slow and do not scale with increasing object complexity. The problem is extremely challenging because real world-materials exhibit extraordinary variety and complexity. To address these challenges, I suggest a novel computational approach that facilitates intuitive design, accurate and fast simulation techniques, and a functional representation of 3D content. I propose a multi-scale representation of functional goals and hybrid models that describes the physical behavior at a coarse scale and the relationship to the underlying material composition at the resolution of the 3D printer. My approach is to combine data-driven and physically-based modeling, providing both the required speed and accuracy through smart precomputations and tailored simulation techniques that operate on the data. A key aspect of this modeling and simulation approach is to identify domains that are sufficiently low-dimensional to be correctly sampled. Subsequently, I propose the fundamental re-thinking of the workflow, leading to solutions that allow synthesizing model instances optimized on-the-fly for a specific output device. The principal applicability will be evaluated for functional goals, such as appearance, deformation, and sensing capabilities.

1 497 730 €

Start date: 2017-02-01, End date: 2022-01-31

Molecular studies of development in diverse animal models have revealed the remarkably conserved set of morphogens governing growth and patterning of body axes and organ fields. Equally astounding is the diversity of form and function arising from the implementation of these morphogens. The systematic analysis of well-defined traits in closely related species has revealed how changes in gene regulatory sequences and their trans-acting factors have yielded diversity. An important future challenge is to understand, at the genome level, the evolution of animal form in situations where such a rich set of closely related species may not be available. Vertebrate limb regeneration is a particularly fascinating yet challenging context to pursue the evolution of traits related to controlling the body plan. Amputation of the Axolotl limb results in the formation of a limb blastema that morphologically and molecularly resembles the embryonic limb bud. In this system, the limb morphogen network must be reactivated only upon tissue removal and not wounding, but also corresponding to a positional memory existing in the adult tissue. These signalling cassettes must also be deployed in a way that can scale to the size of a blastema that is vast when compared to an embryonic limb bud. An important question is whether and how the limb development network has diverged to accomodate these unique traits. During Axolotl limb development and regeneration, some key limb morphogens display divergent expression patterns compared to other vertebrates. I hypothesize that this divergent expression has functional importance for allowing limb regeneration. My goal is to 1) understand how this divergent expression arose 2) functionally test its role in regeneration specificity and scaling, and 3) use the system to dissect the molecular nature of positional memory that is critical for regeneration. I refer to this work as “evo-reg”.

2 325 659 €

Start date: 2018-01-01, End date: 2022-12-31