Revealing the dynamic mechanisms that pattern a mammalian embryo is key
to understanding human biology and disease, yet few
experimental systems
permit to study the dynamic physical aspects of cells and
molecules in
living mammalian embryos.
Our group combines single-cell imaging and quantitative
methods to
discover how the dynamic behaviour of DNA-binding molecules
controls the
development of the first specialised cells in living mouse
embryos. We
recently established new experimental assays to visualise
the movement
of transcription factors, which are key regulatory molecules
controlling
gene expression, in four dimensions (x, y, z and time). We
perform
experiments at the single cell level and as they occur in
real time in
intact embryos. This approach allows us to probe biochemical
events
typically studied in fixed specimens or in cell homogenates
often
lacking the spatiotemporal dynamics of in vivo systems.
We also extend these studies by comparing pluripotent cells
in the
embryo to several stem cell lines cultured in vitro, which
are derived
from the actual embryo (such as ES cells) or that are
reprogrammed from
somatic cell lineages (iPS cells). In addition, we have
developed live
imaging tools to study the cellular mechanisms governing the
formation
of the first tissue-like structures in the embryo, with a
particular
focus on cell movements and formation of the central nervous
system.
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Click here to download an overview of the Plachta Group
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