Dendritic cells are immune cells that migrate within the human body in search of pathogens. This search is performed by a random walk, which combines persistent and diffuse movements. The mechanism underlying this random walk is currently not known. The group of Franziska Lautenschläger (SFB project A8), in collaboration with Karsten Kruse (project A1) and Bin Qu and Markus Hoth (project A3) analyzed very long trajectories of dendritic cells ex vivo, and described their characteristic persistent and diffusive patterns. Together with theoretical analysis, the researchesrs provided evidence that the random walk of dendritic cells could be a consequence of the intrinsic actin dynamics without need for molecular noise or external polarization cues. The results hint at the possibility that these cells can adapt their random search strategies by changing the spontaneous dynamics of their actin cytoskeleton. The work was published in the renowned journal Proceeding of the National Academy of Science USA.
Link to the press release of the Saarland University
Link to the MDR article , link to the MDR interview
Prof. Dr. Franziska Lautenschläger, PI of project A10 of the SFB 1027 (© Thorsten Mohr)