Young In­ves­ti­ga­tors

Substantial funding for emerging research talent

The Young Investigators programme at Saarland University supports high-potential junior researchers working in the BioMed field.

The programme enables talented young scientists to focus entirely on their research work by providing project funding for a total of three years. This initial funding package also gives them the flexibility and time to acquire additional external funding for their research.

Since the YI programme was launched, a total of fifteen early career researchers in Saarbrücken and Homburg have received funding on the basis of a competitive selection process.

Lattice Dynamics in Microtubule Bundles

Jun.-Prof. Dr. Laura Aradilla Zapata

ORCID

Microtubules are cytoskeletal filaments spanning the intracellular space of most cells. They can be organized into highly diverse network architectures, reflecting their manifold functions. One of their most striking characteristics is their ability to dynamically grow and shrink by addition or loss of subunits at the tips. In contrast to microtubule tips, the lattice far from the tips was long considered to be static.

Recent findings challenge this paradigm: I could show that the microtubule lattice is dynamic and constantly renews itself by continuously losing and incorporating subunits from the surrounding solution. This surprising property has profound effects on the overall microtubule behavior and characteristics: It influences microtubule tip dynamics, lifetime, resistance to mechanical stress and the activity and localization of other proteins. Yet, many details of lattice dynamics remain elusive. In particular, the interplay between lattice dynamics, mechanics and different microtubule network architectures is largely unknown.

 

Projects in the Young Investigators programme