[Slaam] SLAAM Seminar Monday, October 9th, 9am Pacific: Mengqi Xu (University of Pennsylvania)

[SLAAM Distribution List]

Dear enthusiasts of the SLAAM seminars,



We are excited to announce that the next  Soft Living Active and Adaptive Matter (SLAAM)<https://urldefense.proofpoint.com/v2/url?u=https-3A__physics.ucmerced.edu_slaam&d=DwMF-g&c=WO-RGvefibhHBZq3fL85hQ&r=6T170XR90Za4-nl9r1e8-WfEJbvH5g5hJbA9UumqfWQ&m=blUGUqAYGAyOmfcA6wfbX1KdEHN6f7rlZXR4X15CvyI8uL__ETi299NvZD96qFU6&s=MXUKX4H_djd0Ct_0kzRBhKPqez6-ARSHV2ymcIgm0vs&e=> seminar will be given by Dr. Mengqi Xu (University of Pennsylvania) on Monday, October 9th, at 9am Pacific/11am Central/12 noon Eastern time (US), with the title:

“Myosin-I facilitates symmetry breaking and promotes the growth of actin comet tails”

Please join at the link below to attend:

https://ucmerced.zoom.us/j/92693607475?pwd=TnI5dDhRRnYvejNZK2xNN0s4M0R5UT09<https://urldefense.proofpoint.com/v2/url?u=https-3A__ucmerced.zoom.us_j_92693607475-3Fpwd-3DTnI5dDhRRnYvejNZK2xNN0s4M0R5UT09&d=DwMF-g&c=WO-RGvefibhHBZq3fL85hQ&r=6T170XR90Za4-nl9r1e8-WfEJbvH5g5hJbA9UumqfWQ&m=O8qMRgNKyoPvtsVZg8ZfBNtLCUDyJgxTRW3qBCkxor7FWyzclXdrZHLsUUJnajQo&s=Fc0LF7BKeY-N8RWCA1JZPtXHGcs7LT8bWaOKdgeG1FE&e=>

Zoom Meeting ID: 926 9360 7475   |   Passcode: 223642

As usual, there will be a 15 min informal Q&A at the end of the hour. Graduate students will have an opportunity to interact with the speaker in an informal setting during the "Meet the speaker" timeslot just after the talk. Please join if the time works for you.

We recognize that this seminar takes place on Indigenous Peoples’ Day and that some members of our audience may be observing the holiday to honor and celebrate Native American peoples. For anyone who is unable to attend the talk synchronously, a recording will be posted to https://physics.ucmerced.edu/slaam in the near future.

Please see more info in the flyer here<https://physics.ucmerced.edu/sites/physics.ucmerced.edu/files/page/documents/mengqi_slaam.pdf> and in the text below:



Abstract: Actin and myosin are molecular machines that convert free energy released from ATP hydrolysis into mechanical force. Polymerizing actin networks provide pushing force for a variety of cellular processes including cell motility, endocytosis and phagocytosis. Myosin-Is, as single-headed, membrane associated motors of the myosin superfamily, are commonly found alongside Arp2/3-medicated branched actin network at membrane interfaces, where they participate in actin organization and force generation. However, the fundamental question of ‘how do forces generated by myosin-I motor activity couple with actin assembly for force generation?’ remains unresolved. To investigate the role of myosin-I in actin-mediated force generation, we reconstituted an in-vitro actin-based motility system. In this system, branched actin networks were nucleated by Arp2/3 complex from a micron-sized bead surface coated with Arp2/3 activating factors. Initially, actin filaments formed a symmetric shell around the bead, which then transitioned into a polarized comet tail after symmetry breaking, propelling the bead forward. We site-specifically coupled a range of densities of myosin-Is to the bead surface and assessed their
effects on actin polymerization, network architecture, and symmetry breaking. We found that myosin-Is promoted force generation by regulating the dynamics and architecture of the actin comet tails through its force-generating power strokes, applying an effective repulsive force from the surface. These studies suggest synergy between myosin-I activity and branched actin assembly to drive morphological changes at the cell membrane.

Speaker bio

Dr. Xu is a postdoctoral researcher working with Prof. Michael Ostap at University of Pennsylvania, Perelman Medical School, Muscle Institute, studying cytoskeleton and molecular motors. She received her PhD in Physics with Prof. Jennifer Ross at Syracuse University, where she investigated the enhanced diffusion of active enzymes and built enzyme-powered micro-robots using DNA origami.



See you there!



Best regards,

Suraj Shankar

on behalf of the SLAAM organizing team
(Alexandra Tayar, Suraj Shankar, Daniel Beller, Kinjal Dasbiswas)

To join the SLAAM mailing list, please sign up here<https://urldefense.proofpoint.com/v2/url?u=https-3A__docs.google.com_forms_d_e_1FAIpQLScTyzEuuE7TfrrapgP4tzN-5FoPSqbBhURUxa9-2Dzc8USnY1IPzA_viewform&d=DwMFAw&c=WO-RGvefibhHBZq3fL85hQ&r=6T170XR90Za4-nl9r1e8-WfEJbvH5g5hJbA9UumqfWQ&m=NK4EGo1VvrDiYSxdvOUJXgCkEAzTrQzNpQi-P59LZiKL_lMA3briJm9KQh9Y3suN&s=3hc1lEhiJwBLtMEr12Z9K5XtZaVlEfOZKYXGtXCjRDg&e=>. If you’re a postdoc interested in giving a SLAAM talk, we invite you to register your interest on that webform.



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Regards,
Suraj Shankar (he/him/his)
University of Michigan LSA Collegiate Fellow
Incoming Assistant Professor (Physics), University of Michigan
https://surajshankar.com/

If I send emails outside of standard working hours, I may be working flexibly or in a different time zone. I do not expect a response outside of your working hours.

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