NSCI 341
Cell Dynamics Living Systems Spring 2010
Division III
Cross-listed BIOL 410
This is not the current course catalog

Far from being static entities, individual cells can exhibit dynamic behaviors, sometimes migrating great distances or structurally reorganizing as in the formation–or reformation–of neuronal synapses. The ability of cells to move and reshape underlies a vast array of normal biological processes, including immune function, embryonic development, and memory formation, as well as abnormal processes such as cancer growth and metastasis. It is through precise regulation of cytoskeletal dynamics that much of cellular motility is achieved, and we are just beginning to understand the detailed mechanisms of how this is regulated. In this course we will examine the theory and mechanisms of bacterial chemotaxis, the remarkable life cycle of the soil-dwelling amoeba Dictyostelium discoideum, and how migration and motility are regulated in a variety of eukaryotic systems.