Berlin 2008 – wissenschaftliches Programm
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BP: Fachverband Biologische Physik
BP 16: Pattern Formation and Developmental Processes
BP 16.1: Vortrag
Mittwoch, 27. Februar 2008, 17:30–17:45, C 243
Coupling vs. Noise: The Rise and Fall of Synchrony in the Segmentation Clock — •Ingmar Riedel-Kruse1,2, Claudia Mueller2, and Andrew Oates2 — 1California Institute of Technology, Pasadena, USA — 2Max Planck Institute of Molecular Cell Biology and Genetics, Dresden, Germany
The "segmentation clock" is thought to coordinate sequential segmentation of the body axis in vertebrate embryos. This clock comprises a multi-cellular genetic network of synchronized oscillators, coupled by intercellular Delta/Notch signaling. How this synchrony is established, and how its loss determines the position of segmentation defects in Delta/Notch mutants is unknown. We analyzed the clock's synchrony dynamics by varying strength and timing of Notch coupling in zebrafish embryos using techniques for quantitative perturbation of gene function. We developed a physical theory based on coupled phase oscillators explaining the observed onset and rescue of segmentation defects, the clock's robustness against developmental noise, and a critical point beyond which synchrony decays. We conclude that synchrony among these genetic oscillators can be established by simultaneous initiation and self-organization, and that the segmentation defect position is determined by the difference between coupling strength and noise.
Science 317: 1911 (2007).