The most remarkable aspect of life is its mysterious origin.
Although chemists are now able to create the building blocks of life in the lab, the magic spark that makes these molecules self-assemble into something living could not be observed yet. And indeed, a basic law of physics dictates that man made constructs are prone to decay when left to themselves. Our past insights reveal that first replicating entities on our planet were not entirely alone though, but taken care of by heat driven micro-reactors inside submarine volcanic rocks. In these little compartments genetic molecules get trapped and find optimal conditions for replication. Additionally they are selected towards ever increasing complexity, reversing the usual one-way route from living organisms to dead matter.
More recently, we found that also phase separated protocells can be assembled in this setting, and we are studying the implications of this finding supported by a 5-year collaborative grant that we received from the Volkswagen Foundation. Such phase-separated compartments have long been proposed as precursors to cellular life. Now, it we have shown that RNA–peptide protocells are more robust when formed using shorter (rather than longer) peptides, and that peptide sequence determines the functional materials properties of these compartments.
Cleavage furrow-directed cortical flows bias PAR polarization pathways to link cell polarity to cell division.
Ng K, Hirani N, Bland T, Borrego-Pinto J, Wagner S, Kreysing M, Goehring NW.
Curr Biol. 2023 Oct 23;33(20):4298-4311.e6. doi: 10.1016/j.cub.2023.08.076.
ISO-FLUCS: Symmetrization of optofluidic manipulations in quasi-isothermal micro-environments.
Minopoli, A.; Wagner, S.; Erben, E.; Liao, W.; Stoev, I. D.; Lauga, E.; Kreysing, M. (2023).
eLight , 3, 16. DOI: 10.1186/s43593-023-00016-2
Charge-density reduction promotes ribozyme activity in RNA-peptide coacervates via RNA fluidization and magnesium partitioning.
Iglesias-Artola JM, Drobot B, Kar M, Fritsch AW, Mutschler H, Dora Tang TY, Kreysing M.
Nat Chem. 2022 Apr;14(4):407-416. doi: 10.1038/s41557-022-00890-8.
Local thermodynamics govern formation and dissolution of Caenorhabditis elegans P granule condensates.
Fritsch AW, Diaz-Delgadillo AF, Adame-Arana O, Hoege C, Mittasch M, Kreysing M, Leaver M, Hyman AA, Jülicher F, Weber CA.
Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A. 2021 Sep 14;118(37):e2102772118. doi: 10.1073/pnas.2102772118.
Feedback-based positioning and diffusion suppression of particles via optical control of thermoviscous flows.
Erben E, Seelbinder B, Stoev ID, Klykov S, Maghelli N, Kreysing M.
Opt Express. 2021 Sep 13;29(19):30272-30283. doi: 10.1364/OE.432935.
Optical plasticity of mammalian cells.
Subramanian K, Petzold H, Seelbinder B, Hersemann L, Nüsslein I, Kreysing M.
J Biophotonics. 2021 Apr;14(4):e202000457. doi: 10.1002/jbio.202000457.
Condensation of Ded1p Promotes a Translational Switch from Housekeeping to Stress Protein Production.
Iserman C, Desroches Altamirano C, Jegers C, Friedrich U, Zarin T, Fritsch AW, Mittasch M, Domingues A, Hersemann L, Jahnel M, Richter D, Guenther UP, Hentze MW, Moses AM, Hyman AA, Kramer G, Kreysing M, Franzmann TM, Alberti S.
Cell. 2020 May 14;181(4):818-831.e19. doi: 10.1016/j.cell.2020.04.009.
Regulated changes in material properties underlie centrosome disassembly during mitotic exit.
Mittasch M, Tran VM, Rios MU, Fritsch AW, Enos SJ, Ferreira Gomes B, Bond A, Kreysing M, Woodruff JB.
J Cell Biol. 2020 Apr 6;219(4):e201912036. doi: 10.1083/jcb.201912036.
Rod nuclear architecture determines contrast transmission of the retina and behavioral sensitivity in mice.
Subramanian K, Weigert M, Borsch O, Petzold H, Garcia-Ulloa A, Myers EW, Ader M, Solovei I, Kreysing M.
Elife. 2019 Dec 11;8:e49542. doi: 10.7554/eLife.49542.
Non-invasive perturbations of intracellular flow reveal physical principles of cell organization.
Mittasch M, Gross P, Nestler M, Fritsch AW, Iserman C, Kar M, Munder M, Voigt A, Alberti S, Grill SW, Kreysing M.
Nat Cell Biol. 2018 Mar;20(3):344-351. doi: 10.1038/s41556-017-0032-9.
Nuclear architecture of rod photoreceptor cells adapts to vision in mammalian evolution.
Solovei I, Kreysing M, Lanctôt C, Kösem S, Peichl L, Cremer T, Guck J, Joffe B.
Cell. 2009 Apr 17;137(2):356-68. doi: 10.1016/j.cell.2009.01.052.
Photonic crystal light collectors in fish retina improve vision in turbid water.
Kreysing M, Pusch R, Haverkate D, Landsberger M, Engelmann J, Ruiter J, Mora-Ferrer C, Ulbricht E, Grosche J, Franze K, Streif S, Schumacher S, Makarov F, Kacza J, Guck J, Wolburg H, Bowmaker JK, von der Emde G, Schuster S, Wagner HJ, Reichenbach A, Francke M.
Science. 2012 Jun 29;336(6089):1700-3. doi: 10.1126/science.1218072.
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Moritz Kreysing ∂ Google scholar