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Project

Influence of Temperature on Cell Cycle Progression

Cold-blooded animals, such as Reptilia, and warm-blooded as Mammalia, adapt to environmental temperature changes in a very different way. While the latter has evolved to maintain a high and constant body temperature by metabolic means, cold-blooded animals largely adopt their ambient temperature. In this project, I aim to answer to a deceivingly simple, yet fundamental, question of how each cell responds to changes in temperature. I will focus on the understanding of how the timing of cell division, mitosis, and more in general the cell cycle is influenced by changes in temperature. The question will be addressed using live-cell (fluorescence) imaging in a wide range of cell lines, spanning from healthy to cancer cells, and characterizing the temperature scaling in accord to Arrhenius’ law. Moreover, I will analyze how checkpoint signaling and heat shock proteins play a role in determining the thermal limits of dividing cells in order to clarify these regulation mechanisms. I expect our findings to shed light on how the most fundamental processes, such as mitosis, are influenced by temperature, which could help in defining a therapeutic window for cancer thermotherapy.

Date:6 Nov 2017 →  30 Jan 2020
Keywords:Temperature, Cell Cycle, Mitosis, Arrhenius' law, Thermotherapy, Phase Separation
Disciplines:Other biological sciences
Project type:PhD project