CSB Seminar Series – Dominique Bergmann, PhD – Stanford University, Department of Biology, HHMI

CSB Departmental Seminar

Dominique Bergmann, PhD

Stanford University, Department of Biology, HHMI

TITLE: Flexible organ development for a changing world

ABSTRACT: Development is a balance of robustness and flexibility—how do organisms create reliably organized tissues and organs, yet leave open the possibility of change? Plants respond to environmental stimuli by modifying their development. As the major organs of photosynthesis, leaves must regulate their size, position, and gas-exchange capacity to adapt and compete. Stomata, microscopic valves on the surface of plants, are essential for the regulated exchange of carbon dioxide from the atmosphere with water vapor from inside the plant. Asymmetric cell divisions generate stomata, but these “stem cell like” divisions also produce many other cells on the leaf surface. Therefore, the stomatal lineage in leaf epidermis is an excellent model to study how genetic and cellular behaviors can generate developmental and physiological flexibility. Using genetic, genomic, live-imaging and modeling approaches on extant and historical (herbaria-preserved) samples, we are building a framework for a mechanistic understanding of what information is sensed and prioritized, and what constitutes the cellular and developmental engines of plasticity.

HOST: Student invitee – Karan Ishii, Plotnikov Lab

LOCATION: Cell and Systems Biology, 25 Harbord Street, Suite 432

LIVESTREAM LINK: https://csb.utoronto.ca/live-stream/