Quantitative fluorescence microscopy for the analysis of Wnt pathway interactions and dynamics (A06)

• Subject Area: Structural Biology ; Biochemistry
• Term: since 2017
• Project identifier: Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG) - Project number 331351713

In this collaborative project the quantification of Wnt ligand interactions will be extended to all ten FZD receptors, thereby gaining important, unresolved information on the native binding selectivity of a Wnt and its potential to dictate Wnt signaling specificity. FFS approaches (e.g., axial line-scanning FCS) will be used to quantify ligand-receptor and receptor-receptor interactions involved in signalosome formation. By super-resolution single-molecule localization microscopy imaging (SMLM) the stoichiometry and dynamics of Wnt receptor/co-receptor clusters and signalosome formation at the plasma membrane will be visualized. The project relies on both novel technologies and interdisciplinary collaborations within the consortium.

• DFG Programme: Collaborative Research Centres
• Subproject of: SFB 1324: Mechanisms and functions of Wnt signaling
• Applicant Institution: Ruprecht-Karls-Universität Heidelberg
• Project Heads: Dr. Gary Davidson; Professor Dr. Gerd Ulrich Nienhaus