SKM 2023 – scientific programme

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BP: Fachverband Biologische Physik

BP 28: Poster Session II

BP 28.44: Poster

Thursday, March 30, 2023, 18:00–20:00, P2/EG

Nuclei trafficking dynamics in Physarum polycephalum — •Johnny Tong, Kaspar Wachinger, Nico Schramma, and Karen Alim — School of Natural Sciences, Technical University of Munich, Germany

Synthetical organism and organs house up to thousands of nuclei within a single envelope, often shaped into a complex network archi- tecture. How are nuclei able to efficiently exchange signals over long distances? To understand how synthetia coordinate gene expression, intracellular transport within these networks is key. Physarum poly- cephalum is an ideal syncytia model as its network-shaped body is a single multinucleated cell which can sense and adapt to its environ- ment in a short time scale and a long length scale. Here, nuclei are trapped in the tube walls or advected by the oscillatory cytoplasmic streaming. We investigate its flow-driven dynamics and mechanochem- ical behaviors using image-based methods, including particle tracking and velocimetry, to analyze the nuclei trafficking. We also utilize the thousands of nuclei to propose a new technique akin to traction force microscopy. By analyzing the fluctuations of nuclei trapped in the ac- tomyosin cortex, we can probe the change of mechanical properties due to external stimuli, such as food, substrate stiffness, and light. Our techniques may be applied to other systems to unveil the mechanisms of long-range genetic communication within network-shaped organisms like fungi.