DSSS - How do cells create tissue patterns?

Tissues are not random assemblies of cells; instead, cells of distinct types are spatially patterned to create tissue form and function. The blueprint behind this organization lies in the spatiotemporally patterned activities of signaling pathways, which determine cell states and behaviors. For simplicity, I refer to these spatiotemporally orchestrated signaling activities as a tissue’s signaling landscape. My lab is focused on uncovering how cells generate and interpret these landscapes to create tissue patterns, through three interconnected research directions: (1) synthetically reconstituting signaling landscapes from the bottom up, to uncover the molecular principles that shape them; (2) identifying novel rules of cell-cell interactions that drive tissue pattern formation in natural contexts; and (3) developing computational tools to map and analyze the signaling landscapes that guide these cell-cell interactions. Together, these approaches aim to reveal the fundamental logic of tissue patterning. In this talk, I will highlight general principles we have discovered and tools we have developed that are broadly applicable across tissue systems. As a case study, I will discuss how we have applied these systems biology strategies to explore how cells build the complex structure and physiological function of the lung.