University of Oregon

von Dassow lab: potential projects

SDIM4075George von Dassow’s research program focuses on the cell biology of development, both in early-stage embryos and in long-lived planktonic larvae of invertebrates.  Research in my lab relies heavily on what I call “LCPA analysis”: Look Closely and Pay Attention, usually using a microscope and a video camera or fluorescent probes.  Examples of possible research projects include: analyzing and comparing flow fields induced by ciliated marine larvae as they feed; manipulating embryonic development in sea urchins to alter larval morphology, then assessing the effect on larval feeding performance; studying the dynamic organization of contractile proteins during “excitable” behaviors in starfish oocytes; using gene knockdown approaches to modulate cell cycle control in starfish embryos; or using microscopy to characterize morphogenetic cell rearrangement during development of the main ciliated band of snail and ribbon worm embryos.