Biological Physics - Wiggly Lab

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(photo credit: Natalie Andrew) Physarum Polycephalum is a slime mold growing as a mostly planar network of veins encapsulating periodically pumped fluid flow with nutrients and genetic material. Together with the Biological Physics and Morphogenesis (BPM) group, we are interested in understanding the growth and pruning dynamics of this individual. Learning from this individual may help to identify patterns that may allow to build hypothesis for blood vasculature morphogenesis.

Related Publications

We investigated numerous systems from cellular transport mediated by actomyosin contractions [1] to filtration in the human kidney [2].
Our main system of interest was the slime mold Physarum Polycephalum. We started unravelling that a subtle combination of diffusion and pulsating flows is responsible for driving nutrients to the entire organism [3,4]. This beautiful organism continuously adapts in time, spontaneously building new and pruning old veins to optimize foraging and other vital functions. We uncovered with experiments and theory, how a subtle feedback of shear stress on the material composing the vein walls is responsible for pruning or growing veins [5,6].
We are now investigating bacteria suspensions! Stay tuned for more.
[1] Theoretical study of actin layers attachment and separation S. Marbach, A. L. Godeau, D. Riveline, J.-F. Joanny, J. Prost, Euro. Phys. J. E 38 (11) 122

[2] Active Osmotic Exchanger for Efficient Nanofiltration Inspired by the Kidney S. Marbach, L. Bocquet, Phys. Rev. X 6 (3) 031008

[3] Pruning to Increase Taylor Dispersion in Physarum polycephalum Networks S. Marbach, K. Alim, N. Andrew, A. Pringle, M. P. Brenner, Phys. Rev. Lett. 117 (17) 178103

[4] Active control of dispersion within a channel with flow and pulsating walls S. Marbach, K. Alim, Phys. Rev. Fluids 4 114202

[5] Vein fate determined by flow-based but time-delayed integration of network architecture S. Marbach, N. Ziethen, L. Bastin, F. Bauerle, K. Alim eLife 2023 12, e78100

[6] Vascular adaptation model from force balance: Physarum polycephalum as a case study S. Marbach, N. Ziethen, K. Alim New Journal of Physics 2023 25, 123052