Center for Theoretical Biological Physics

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This award provides a second five-year term of funding for the Center for Theoretical Biological Physics (CTBP) located at the University of California, San Diego (UCSD). This second period builds on the extensive research, education, and outreach successes achieved during the initial five years to both expand the reach and accelerate the rate of scientific progress on critical issues in biological physics and extend the scope of training and outreach activities. Crucially, it continues the strategy of both developing and using concepts and techniques from physics and applied mathematics to tackle otherwise intractable problems in the science of living matter and conversely to use biological problems to motivate new concepts of broad applicability throughout physics. The research program includes three projects that utilize the depth and breadth of the collective expertise of the center participants to target specific biological areas for rapid advances. These are: Cellular Tectonics- the dynamic mesoscale structure of the intracellular milieu; Computational Approaches to Intracellular and Intercellular Communication - chemical-based reaction-diffusion governed communication across complex spaces; and Gene Regulatory Networks - genetic/signaling networks exhibit specificity and robustness in the face of intrinsic stochasticity, and yet retain evolvability. Each of these areas has reached the stage where approaches based on developing and using fundamental physical principles can be effectively implemented. A separate part of the research plan will be organized around smaller seed projects and around junior investigators. This part will ensure flexibility in keeping abreast of newly emerging directions and allow for re-orienting the principal projects as needed. This overall strategy is enabled by the success the center has demonstrated to date in creating an environment which fosters multi-investigator collaborations, interdisciplinary thinking and a sense of excitement at the possibility of helping build what is, in some ways, a new branch of physics. A main challenge at the biological physics frontier has been the training of physical scientists to become leaders in this inherently multi-disciplinary subject. A significant number of students and postdocs trained in the center have secured leading national and international positions in both physical and biological sciences. This cadre of talented individuals is contributing to the notion that deep physics-based conceptual approaches can now encompass living-system complexity. Educational approaches that have proven successful, including training workshops, a visiting scientist program, a biological physics curriculum and the seminar/reading courses/journal club activities are being continued. The process whereby students learn biological physics will be formalized to a great extent by integrating the courses into a comprehensive syllabus and by creating individualized plans for meeting biology background shortfalls. New ideas for disseminating center practices to the broader community are under development. The outreach program focuses on bringing under-represented groups into the research pipeline at the undergraduate level by working with partner institutions in Southern California. An earlier effort with Cal State University San Marcos is making progress, and this will be enhanced and expanded to other institutions. The overall excitement engendered by research into living systems will be exploited as a vehicle to interact with the K-12 educational sector.This award is jointly funded by the Directorate for Mathematical and Physical Sciences (MPS) and the Directorate for Biological Sciences (BIO) as part of a partnership to foster research and education at the mathematical and physical sciences - life sciences interface. Funds are provided by the Physics Frontiers Centers program and the Condensed Matter and Materials Theory program in MPS and the Biomolecular Systems cluster in BIO.