Description:
Nearly all cells can move, often directionally. Without migration, embryos would not take shape, the nervous system would not wire, wounds would not close, and immune defenses would falter. Yet migration also underlies inflammation and cancer metastasis, a reminder that it both sustains and undermines life. This volume, with contributions from an international team of experts, shows that our knowledge of how cells migrate is rapidly advancing and the field is very exciting one to work in.
Each of the four sections of the book has a specific focus:
- Single-cell migration, including key features of directed movement - cell polarity and memory, excitability and inhibition of signaling, cytoskeletal force generation, adhesion and traction - and the quantitative tools needed to analyze and model them.
- The coordination of cells in groups, how tissues remodel and respond, and the expression of these processes in development
- The technological advances and experimental tools that have advanced our understanding
- The multiple computational and mathematical models that have provided insights and how machine learning techniques are poised to accelerate discovery
Brief description: Dr. Michelle Starz-Gaiano is Professor and Chair of Biological Sciences at the University of Maryland Baltimore County (UMBC). She received her bachelor's degree in biology from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) and her PhD in Developmental Genetics from New York University. Afterwards, Michelle completed a postdoctoral fellowship at Johns Hopkins School of Medicine. She joined UMBC in 2008 and has received the Donald Creighton Outstanding Faculty Member Award from the UMBC Graduate Student Association for her excellent mentorship.