Our goal is to identify the physical principles governing life, thus providing new tools to overcome disease and invent smart and robotic materials. The architecture of vascular (flow) networks and their surprisingly complex functions are dynamically controlled by the interplay of flow and active, living matter. To uncover this inherently interdisciplinary process, we intertwine theory and experiment, thereby using a variety of approaches ranging from statistical physics and mechanics, cell, developmental, and synthetic biology to regenerative medicine.
News
Size as a foraging strategy
We discovered that superdiffusive migration in Physarum results from size-dependent self-avoidance. Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. 121 (13), e2312611121 (2024)
Our Physarum review!
Our review explores the physical aspects of this fascinating unicellular, from cell and fluid mechanics to network properties and behavior. Annu. Rev. Condens. Matter Phys. 2024. 15:263–89
Vein dynamics explained.
A colossal piece on vein dynamics in #Physarum. Veins spontaneously shrink or grow to increase nutrient spread. But since Physarum has no brain, how does it know which veins to shrink? eLife 12:e78100.
Cool documentary of our lab.
Cool documentary showing our labs. “Schlaue Tiere – verblüffte Forscher”, The trailer can be found here. Thanks to @AdrianBuchl!
Pore space governs transport.
We discovered how pore space geometry impacts transport of substances through fluids. #PorousMedia #IonBatteries #BloodVessels #BiologicalNetworks Nat Commun 13, 5885 (2022)
Funding
