Thus, we showed a relay system that doesn’t just result in a wave of the same shape change, but a trigger mechanism for one mode of morphogenetic change jump-starting another.

We identified a mechanism that regulates both Drosophila mesoderm internalization and body axis extension. We showed that EGFR signaling, whose earliest known embryonic role was patterning the central nervous system, establishes a DV pattern of graded levels of cell adhesion.

Pleased to share the publication of our paper showing the role of EGFR in coordinating morphogenetic movements in Developmental Cell. Congratulations @MITBiology postdoc, @natclarke8 for all your hard work!
Article: pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/39461341/

Not to be outdone, T48 mutants also had distinct effects. While affecting myosin accumulation in tissue folding, T48 mutants also affected earlier stages of development, exhibiting defects in cellularization and egg shape. Consistent with this, T48 is maternally deposited.

Fog/Cta and T48 pathways are thought to function in parallel in tissue folding. Using this porosity measurement that he found and adapted, Uzuki found that while both pathways similarly reduce myosin, Fog/Cta pathway affected network continuity more that T48 mutants.

Excited to have submitted manuscript by @MITBiology @urop_mit Uzuki Horo. @natclarke8 mentored Uzuki and pushed the project to completion. We discovered how Fog and T48 pathways distinctly regulate myosin activation. biorxiv.org/content/10.110…

Very excited to post our most recent work by superstar postdoc @natclarke8 on EGFR signaling coordinating tissue folding and axis extension in Drosophila. If you love patterning, adhesion, and/or cytoskeleton, this has something for you! Check it out. biorxiv.org/content/10.110…

Huge thanks to @JocMcDonald for the invitation to Kansas State. I had a fantastic time talking science and learning from everyone. I had the best steak that I've had in a while. Manhattan, KS is a gem of a college town. And you are right, the sunrises are spectacular!

@MartinLabMIT and @MITBiology trainees are representing at @ASCBiology annual meeting. Lab members are presenting their work on patterning in cells and Drosophila embryos from simple (crane and chickadee) to highly complex (bird of paradise). Analogy because I am a birder. #ASCB

Jonathan Jackson and @mdenklobnig completing story on regulated transitions in actomyosin dynamics - biorxiv.org/content/10.110…. @MITBiology student @mdenklobnig made key observations in embryo. Jonathan linked to the Drosophila germline and characterized the embryo 🌊🌊🌊.

Check out the behind the scenes story: How a simple observation was turned into mechanistic insight as to how physics and biology collide to shape the nucleus. Students @_nromeo, @keatonburns and Jonathan Jackson led the charge. physicscommunity.nature.com/posts/scaling-…

@MITBiology Anna Yeh's Bitesize (Btsz) work is submitted - biorxiv.org/content/10.110…. Anna showed that Btsz is required for metaphase furrows during syncytial divisions, which prevent spindle collisions. Together with @BruceLaneGoode lab, we showed that Btsz bundles F-actin.

It will be my pleasure today to introduce Prof. @ApplewhiteDerek for @MITBiology colloquium. So fitting that he be invited to a lectureship honoring the late Ned Holt who was a leader in undergraduate education. Also, I am super excited to hear about his latest research!

@drosophilosophy @JTroyLittleton @MIT It was great to meet and talk to you! Here is my 'apologies for missing your seminar' photo. I kept the undergrads honest with their end of semester running.

Thank you for a superb visit. It was great to talk to @SergeyPlotnik16, @rfg_lab, @mitchell_lab, @UlliTepass to hear about the awesome science being done @UofT. Also great trainees @KRothPhD @Valenciathecity @ernest_iu @tepasslab and many more. Love Toronto and the snow!

Student Fernando Melara Barahona representing @MITBiology and @FIU at #ABRCMS2022. Pre-poster breakfast to prepare, def best dressed at Denny's (him, not me). Admissions committees look out for this creative, hardworking, brilliant student.

Ran the the Rochester Half-Marathon remotely. Sad to not enjoy the Genesee River gorge, but this was much flatter and straighter. Glad to have more flexible options to deal with life's uncertainties. #runtheROC

Felt great to do my first in person visit (with flight) in 2.5 years. Had a great time @NUFeinbergMed. Thank you @mliarispe, @thorplab, @vipulshukla08, @volodya_gelfand, @DileepVarmaLab, Brian Mitchell, and @yogeshgoyallab. Great energy at your dept - fun talking science!

I am incredibly proud of @MITBiology student and @folker_lab alum @JaciCamuglia for overcoming innumerable obstacles and completing a stellar thesis. I am so proud of your accomplishments. And thanks to @Bergralhlab for coming from Rochester, NY to participate in defense.

@fjsanchezrivera I am jealous of your and @yadirasotof's office views. But, at least I am not distracted.

@Arish__Shah @dunkindonuts My 'bad a$#' Starbucks is open! And I had a great hike to it.

2/3 - They discovered that distant morphogenetic forces orient mitotic spindles in the Drosophila embryo ‘head’ via force-dependent planar cell polarized Pins localization. Movie shows embryo with mechanically isolated domain (left) and mirror image domain that is uncut (right).

@fjsanchezrivera @yadirasotof We have taken a similar approach.

Thankful for all the scientists whose work led to this. My kids didn't even argue about this one - 1st dose is away and they are feeling good!

Excited to announce that an exceptional @MITBiology student @mdenklobnig successfully defended her thesis work this week. And the announcement art! Thanks to @LouridoLab and @Pulin_Li for serving on the committee - and outside member Victor Hatini!

Teaching virtually was different, but students still hugely creative and awesome. Definitely a semester I will not soon forget. - youtube.com/watch?v=6juS37…

Watch the movies while reading our newest. Great work from Jasmin Imran Alsous, with @NicolasRomeo17, Jonathan Jackson, and @frank_m_mason. Another great collaboration with Jörn Dunkel's group who provide the critical connection to balloons. @MITBiology pnas.org/content/118/10…

@iaincheeseman @amandamjamieson I will take one. I am missing you from my Drubin/Barnes collection.😃

@IbrahimCisse_ Let's correct that! You are missing out on great powdery snow. We have guaranteed white holidays. Can't wait to run in this. Switched my usual core workout to 'shoveling squats'.

If interested in balloons, washing machines, or eggs. Best to view when listening to Led Zeppelin. Great collaboration with Dunkel lab. Dynamics of altruistic fluid transport in egg development biorxiv.org/content/10.110…

@Sudha__Kumari Not seriously, but I go out in the every morning and keep my ears and eyes open. I see a lot of woodpeckers and these.

@peiferlabunc Touche from Boston. But, it will be 60°F tomorrow.

@iaincheeseman Too dark? Maybe I need Sauron instead.

@LouridoLab @ScienceMIT I missed this year, but I ran my own in the middle of nowhere. I even saw a herd of buffalo.

It is difficult to describe the privilege of being able to work with young trainees on difficult problems and to see them succeed. Congratulations Dr. Ko! Can't wait to see what exciting science you do next.

Thank you to @noelresearchlab, @KyraCampbellLab, @bulgakova_lab, and @AlexGFletcher for organizing a great meeting on #contemporaryMorph2019 @royalsociety. Had a great time meeting new researchers and seeing old friends. And I now need these door handles for home.

20 years after being a student @Cornell returned with my kids to visit the famed bird wall @CornellBirds. Still amazed by the diversity of form in organisms, cells, and tissues.

Last week I received my issue of @JCellBiol with Clint Ko's paper on how microtubules mediate intercellular force transmission. I still like having a print copy of journals with our papers.

Spent a wonderful 5 weeks @KITP_UCSB to participate in #morpho19. Had the pleasure of working on a project with @StreichanS and 5 terrific students, @PriyomAdhyapok, Emily Gehrels, Roie Cohen, Jan Rozman, and Dimitris Basagiannis.

Proud of our postdoc Hannah Yevick for @Dev_Cell paper. Hannah showed how connectivity between cells makes development robust to tissue damage. Watch the video.