Biophysics Seminar: Sarah Veatch, University of Michigan

Sarah Veatch, Professor of Biophysics and Physics, Director, Biophysics Program

Seminar title: "Biological tuning of the membrane phase transition facilitates plasma membrane organization and function"

Isolated cell plasma membranes are biologically tuned to be in a single phase at growth temperature but close to a miscibility phase transition, giving rise to remarkable material properties that impact biomembrane functions. This talk will explore several consequences of this biological tuning through experiments in model and intact cell membranes. For example, we show that quantitative super-resolution fluorescence nanoscopy measurements detect the emergence of local membrane environments resembling phases when B cell receptors are clustered in live B cell membranes. We also show that proximity to the membrane phase transition facilitates the recruitment and clustering of soluble proteins at membranes through a process called prewetting in both model membranes and in cells.

Sarah Veatch studies how cells exploit the unique mixing of lipids and proteins within the plasma membrane to interpret environmental cues, rooted in a thermodynamic understanding of liquid-liquid phase separation within complex membranes The Veatch lab applies and develops quantitative measures of membrane heterogeneity and protein function in living cells and model systems.