Our Research
We are interested in understanding how metabolism is integrated with tissue mechanics and cell behaviours during morphogenesis.
The cost of work
How does mechanical work alter metabolism?
Cells are contractile and generate forces through their cytoskeleton which is then transmitted to their surroundings via their adhesions. This helps maintain a mechanical equilibrium between between a cell and its environment, with cells able to modulate both their overall level of contractility and where within the cell it is generated. We are interested in understanding what this does to cellular metabolism, both in terms of gross changes in metabolic flux but also spatial variation. Furthermore, we are interested in understanding how cells sense how much energy is needed to generate the adequate amount of force.
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Fluorescent lifetime image of a micro-patterned epithelium expressing a fluorescent biosensor detecting glucose concentration in the cell (red is high and blue is low levels).
Energy or matter?
How does tissue mechanics alter the balance between growth and energy production during morphogenesis?
Epithelial cells have five "behaviours" that contribute towards the size and shape of a tissue: cell divisions, cell death, size changes, shape changes and their arrangement. Furthermore, through tracking and analysing how cell behaviours contribute to the formation of a tissue, we know that not all cells or lineages are equal. For instance some cells divide at a faster rate, or accumulate more volume, or undergoing more drastic shape changes. A key question in the lab is how this is linked with the metabolic state of cells? Furthermore, during morphogenesis mechanical stresses form and dissipate leading to a constantly evolving environment which cells need to mechanically adjust to. Do the metabolic demands of tissue architecture and topology influence cell behaviours?​
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Confocal movie of epithelial cells in tissue culture expressing a fluorescent biosensor detecting glucose concentration in the cell (red is high and blue is low levels).
Come with me now on a journey through space and time!
How are metabolism and tissue mechanics orchestrated during development?
During development multiple cellular populations cooperate with each other to pattern, grow and shape embryonic tissues in order to form an animal. These intricate processes require a large level of orchestration to occur correctly. How is metabolism integrated into these processes? Is it merely adapting to the genetic and mechanical landscape of the embryo or is it an active driver or development? ​
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Image of a Drosophila embryo undergoing dorsal closure. Magenta (frame 1) and Cyan (frame 2) are different timepoints showing how cell shape is changing as the amnioserosa (large cells) are removed.
