A04 - Dynamics of cytoskeletal networks: From geometric structure to cell mechanics
PIs: Prof. Dr. Sarah Köster; Prof. Dr. Axel Munk
The aim of this project is to investigate how two mechanically distinct types of polymers found in biological cells - microtubules and intermediate filaments - influence or even stabilize each other. We envision to gain a more detailed understanding of this interplay on cell mechanics, dynamics and, eventually, function. We will employ novel statistical tools to investigate the dynamical and correlative behavior of the networks, based on Gromov-Wasserstein spaces and related distances. As we model filament networks as graphs with metric measure space structure, we expect the scope of applicability far beyond the present applications.PhD students:
Anna Blob
Postdocs:
Gilles Mordant, Dr.
Santiago Velilla, Dr.