Bioelectronics (IBI-3)

Speaker: Prof. Wenting Zhao (School of Chemistry, Chemical Engineering and Biotechnology, Nanyang Technological University, Singapore, E-mail : wtzhao@ntu.edu.sg )

Short Bio: Dr. Wenting Zhao is currently an assistant professor in the School of Chemistry, Chemical Engineering and Biotechnology at Nanyang Technological University and a co-investigator of the Mechanobiology Institute, Singapore. She received her Bachelor of Engineering in Zhejiang University, PhD in Hong Kong University of Science and Technology, and complete her postdoctoral training at Stanford University. Her research group aims to reveal the nanoscale interplay between membrane morphology and the assembly of different protein machineries, with specific focuses on nanotopography manipulation in cells and their impacts on disease progression, such as cancer and viral replication. Group website: www.wtzhaolab.com

Guest Talk: "Engineering the Nanoscale Membrane Deformations in Cells "

Abstract. Cellular membrane components, from the plasma membrane to the nuclear envelope, undergo dramatic morphological changes in a variety of essential cellular processes, e.g. endocytosis, morphogenesis, confined migration, and mitosis. Many of the changes happen at tens to hundreds of nanometer scale, which often below the diffraction limit of light. It makes it technically challenging to visualize how cells modulate different protein machineries to generate and control such small-scale membrane deformations. In this talk, I will introduce our efforts in developing patterned nanostructures as an effective tool to generate pre‐defined membrane deformation in live cells, and how we use it to study the influence of nanoscale deformation on various process, including endocytosis, actin polymerization, and subnuclear deformations. By deforming plasma membrane in live cells with a wide range of membrane curvature from +50 nm to -500 nm radius, we found that positive membrane curvatures can facilitate endocytosis by recruiting multiple endocytic proteins. Curvatures below 200nm radius can guide cortical actin polymerization via curvature sensitive proteins. When the nucleus bends on nanopillars, its deformability indicates the changes of nuclear mechanical components and correlates with disease progression. As a new tool to manipulate nanoscale membrane deformation in live cells, we believe nanostructure-based platforms will open up more angles to decipher the rules and roles of nanoscale morphological regulation in cells.

Date: 19 June 2023

Time: 12:00

Venue: Seminar room 309b, Building 2.4w

For online participation contact: g.panaitov@fz-juelich.de