Revealing cell-to-cell variability in the living mammalian embryo by imaging transcription factor dynamics

• Applicant: Dr. Jennifer Zenker
• Subject Area: Developmental Biology
• Term: from 2013 to 2014
• Project identifier: Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG) - Project number 232963654

Every organism is composed of various organs which all results from one embryonic cell. Cell division leads to the growing of the embryo. However, it is still highly debated when and how the most primitive cells of the embryo become different from each other in order to form different organs. The Plachta Group recently developed new imaging tools to study the mobility of gene regulatory proteins in live mouse embryos. Using these tools led to the discovery that rather the movement than the amount of such regulatory proteins is crucial for the establishment of different cell fates. The aim of my proposed project is to further understand the molecular mechanism of cell fate determination in living mouse embryos and the identification of important regulatory proteins. Overall, a better understanding how the various organs become determined in the early embryo will help to develop new strategies to repair adult organs under diseases conditions.

• DFG Programme: Research Fellowships
• International Connection: Australia
• Host: Dr. Nicolas Plachta