19-BBSRC-NSF/BIO. Leveraging synthetic biology to probe the rules of cell morphogenesis.

这个项目试图了解细胞如何使用合成工具控制它们的形状和运动。细胞运动对于单个细胞的捕猎和交配以及多细胞生物体的正确发育和功能都是必不可少的。片状突起称为片状脂膜，是驱动和引导这种运动的引擎。然而，它们的形成规则并不是很清楚。就像蚂蚁群体中，没有个人负责，一个群体的整体行为取决于蚂蚁之间局部相互作用的简单规则，细胞生物学的许多方面都受到蛋白质之间相互作用的局部规则的支配。这个项目试图通过从合成的、设计的蛋白质构建板脂来定义这些蛋白质-蛋白质相互作用的规则，这些蛋白质的相互作用模式可以被定制。这项工作是细胞形状/运动专家(Weiner)和蛋白质设计专家(Woolfson)之间的合作。这项工作必须是多学科的，它将培训三名博士后研究员在细胞生物学、蛋白质设计和生物物理学领域共同工作。这项工作将加强美国和英国实验室之间的联系，以及NSF和BBSRC之间的联系。

This project seeks to understand how cells control their shape and movement using synthetic tools. Cell movement is essential for single cells to hunt and mate and for the correct development and function of multicellular organisms. Sheet-like protrusions called lamellipodia are the engines that power and guide this motility. However, the rules of their formation are not understood. Similar to ant colonies where no individual is "in charge", and the overall behaviours of a colony depends on simple rules of local interaction between ants, many aspects of cell biology are dominated by local rules of interaction between proteins. This project seeks to define these rules of protein-protein interactions by constructing lamellipodia from synthetic, designer proteins whose patterns of interaction can be built to order. This work is a collaboration between an expert in cell shape/movement (Weiner) and an expert in protein design (Woolfson). This work is necessarily multidisciplinary and it will train three postdoctoral fellows to work together across cell biology, protein design and biophysics. This work will strengthen links between US and UK labs and between the NSF and the BBSRC.