Computational modeling of cellular morphogenesis and shape functionality in plants

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Plant development and functioning are determined by the shape and differentiation of the tissues and cells composing the organism. Unlike animal cells, plant cells are surrounded by a stiff matrix, the cell wall. Consequently, cell developmental processes such as increase in cell size and change in cell shape require the mechanical deformation of this polymer wall. In turn, the mechanical properties of the cell wall determine the geometry of the differentiating cell. Much attention has been devoted to overall cell shape changes such as those occurring during the elongation of cylindrical stem or root cells. However, we have a poor understanding of the mechanical principles that govern the generation of complex cellular geometries such as those of star-shaped trichomes or jigsaw puzzle shaped leaf epidermis cells. Conventional numerical modeling methods are unable to cope with this degree of complexity and I propose to use analytic tools developed for applications in mechanical engineering, in combination with an array of quantitative experimental approaches, to model the mechanical processes that determine plant cell growth and to determine how cell shape influences cell function. This research program combines cell biological approaches with micromechanical engineering and computational modeling. As model systems we will study an extremely fast and one-dimensionally growing cell, the pollen tube, and the two-dimensionally expanding pavement cells of the leaf epidermis. We will use mechanical testing in combination with microscopic investigation to examine cellular geometry and growth behavior. We will quantify biophysical cellular parameters using cytomechanical techniques, and we will integrate these data into a theoretical model using finite element methods. This research program is highly interdisciplinary as it combines various cell biological approaches (molecular biology, high end confocal laser scanning microscopy, electron microscopy) with micromechanical engineering and computational modeling and it offers opportunities for graduate students from both disciplines: biology and mathematics/engineering.