Prof. Dr. Dagmar Wachten

We aim to understand how tissue ecosystems are maintained by cellular communication. We focus on the interaction of non-immune cells with immune cells. A subcellular compartment that is important for sensing information from the environment and, in turn, changing cellular fate and function, is the primary cilium. In general, cilia protrude from the surface of almost every mammalian cell and can be grouped into two major classes: a) primary cilia, which are immotile and b) motile cilia, which are also called flagella. Ciliary dysfunction leads to severe diseases commonly referred to as ciliopathies. They comprise e.g. polycystic kidney disease, obesity, blindness, neurodevelopment defects, and infertility. However, the signaling pathways controlling ciliary function are ill-defined. To study ciliary signaling with high spatial and temporal precision, we combine optogenetics and genetically encoded biosensors with high-resolution microscopy, mouse genetics, and biochemistry. This multidisciplinary approach allows not only to investigate ciliary signaling, but can be applied to any subcellular compartment to study its function with spatial and temporal resolution and investigate cell-cell communication during tissue development and homeostasis.
As all neurons and their precursors are ciliated, we aim to understand how primary cilia signaling and function controls neuronal differentiation and how this can be manipulated using optogenetics.