EPFL BioE Talks SERIES "Mobility-Induced Synchronization and Fluctuation in Developmental Patterns"
Event details
| Date | 30.03.2026 |
| Hour | 12:15 › 13:15 |
| Speaker | Prof. Koichiro Uriu, School of Life Science and Technology, Institute of Science Tokyo (JPN) |
| Location | Online |
| Category | Conferences - Seminars |
| Event Language | English |
WEEKLY EPFL BIOE TALKS SERIES (sandwiches provided)
Abstract:
Cell movement plays a pivotal role in morphogenesis during development. By causing cell rearrangement, cell mobility induces fluctuations in developmental patterns. However, such rearrangements may also impact intercellular communication, promoting information transfer in tissues. In this presentation, I present a theoretical framework to analyze the effects of cell mobility on developmental patterns. First, I will show how developmental patterns generated by a morphogen gradient fluctuate due to cell movement. Potential mechanisms that minimize these mobility-induced fluctuations are discussed. Second, I will show that cell mobility can promote synchronization of the segmenting clock, gene expression rhythms which determine the timing of body segment formation in vertebrates. Finally, I will show that the impact of cell mobility on developmental patterns depends on the pattern wavelength. This theoretical framework paves the way for exploring how precise patterning is achieved within dynamic tissues.
Bio:
Koichiro Uriu received his B.S. from the Department of Biology at Niigata University and his Ph.D. in Mathematical Biology from Kyushu University, Japan. He served as a Postdoctoral Research Fellow of the Japan Society for the Promotion of Science (JSPS) and joined the research group of Dr. Andrew Oates at the Max Planck Institute of Molecular Cell Biology and Genetics in Dresden. In 2012, he joined the Theoretical Biology Laboratory at RIKEN as a postdoctoral researcher. During this period, he developed a theoretical framework for the synchronization of mobile oscillators and applied it to genetic oscillators in vertebrate somitogenesis. He was appointed Assistant Professor at Kanazawa University in 2015, where he initiated research on mammalian circadian clocks. In 2023, he joined the Tokyo Institute of Technology (now Institute of Science Tokyo) as an Associate Professor. The Uriu Lab currently focuses on biological rhythms, utilizing mathematical modeling and simulations to uncover the mechanisms of temporal and spatial coordination in living systems.
Zoom link (with one-time registration for the whole series) for attending remotely: https://go.epfl.ch/EPFLBioETalks
Instructions for 1st-year Ph.D. students planning to attend this talk, who are under EDBB’s mandatory seminar attendance rule:
IN CASE you cannot attend in-person in the room, please make sure to
Abstract:
Cell movement plays a pivotal role in morphogenesis during development. By causing cell rearrangement, cell mobility induces fluctuations in developmental patterns. However, such rearrangements may also impact intercellular communication, promoting information transfer in tissues. In this presentation, I present a theoretical framework to analyze the effects of cell mobility on developmental patterns. First, I will show how developmental patterns generated by a morphogen gradient fluctuate due to cell movement. Potential mechanisms that minimize these mobility-induced fluctuations are discussed. Second, I will show that cell mobility can promote synchronization of the segmenting clock, gene expression rhythms which determine the timing of body segment formation in vertebrates. Finally, I will show that the impact of cell mobility on developmental patterns depends on the pattern wavelength. This theoretical framework paves the way for exploring how precise patterning is achieved within dynamic tissues.
Bio:
Koichiro Uriu received his B.S. from the Department of Biology at Niigata University and his Ph.D. in Mathematical Biology from Kyushu University, Japan. He served as a Postdoctoral Research Fellow of the Japan Society for the Promotion of Science (JSPS) and joined the research group of Dr. Andrew Oates at the Max Planck Institute of Molecular Cell Biology and Genetics in Dresden. In 2012, he joined the Theoretical Biology Laboratory at RIKEN as a postdoctoral researcher. During this period, he developed a theoretical framework for the synchronization of mobile oscillators and applied it to genetic oscillators in vertebrate somitogenesis. He was appointed Assistant Professor at Kanazawa University in 2015, where he initiated research on mammalian circadian clocks. In 2023, he joined the Tokyo Institute of Technology (now Institute of Science Tokyo) as an Associate Professor. The Uriu Lab currently focuses on biological rhythms, utilizing mathematical modeling and simulations to uncover the mechanisms of temporal and spatial coordination in living systems.
Zoom link (with one-time registration for the whole series) for attending remotely: https://go.epfl.ch/EPFLBioETalks
Instructions for 1st-year Ph.D. students planning to attend this talk, who are under EDBB’s mandatory seminar attendance rule:
IN CASE you cannot attend in-person in the room, please make sure to
- send D. Reinhard a note well ahead of time (ideally before seminar day), informing that you plan to attend the talk online, and, during seminar:
- be signed in on Zoom with a recognizable user name (not any alias making it difficult or impossible to identify you).
Practical information
- Informed public
- Registration required
Organizer
- Prof. Andrew Oates, Institute of Bioengineering
Contact
- Institute of Bioengineering (IBI), Dietrich REINHARD