Tatyana Svitkina
Assistant Professor, Dept of Biology

Cell Biology and Physiology Program

Address

Office & Lab:
Department of Biology
221 Leidy Labs
415 S. University Ave.
Philadelphia, PA 19104

Office tel.: 215 898-5736
Lab tel.: 215 898-5757
Fax: 215 898-8780
E-mail: svitkina@sas.upenn.edu

Link

Dr. Svitkina's Biology Dept webpage

Education

Moscow State University: MS (Biochemistry), 1973.

Cancer Research Center, Russian Academy of Medical Sciences: PhD (Experimental Oncology), 1979.

Supreme Attestation Committee of Russia: Academic Degree Doctor of Sciences (Cell Biology), 1990.

Research Interests

• Roles of the cytoskeleton in cell motility.

Key words: Actin, cytoskeleton, cell motility, microscopy.

Search PubMed for articles

Description of Research

My lab focuses on the mechanisms of cell motility and roles of the cytoskeleton in this process. Cytoskeleton may be considered as molecular hardware for motility, which is controlled by molecular "software", the signaling networks. The major question of our research is how the hardware works. The design of an unknown machine can be understood based on how its elements are structurally arranged, how they move during action, and what happens if some element is missing. Our experimental approach is based on the same idea applied to cells and molecules. We use platinum replica electron microscopy (EM) to analyze the structural organization of the cytoskeleton at the nanometer scale level. Since EM is not applicable to living cells, to see the machinery in action we use correlative analysis, in which the dynamic observation of a cell is followed by EM of the same cell. This approach allows establishing functional connections between cytoskeletal dynamics and macromolecular organization. Functional perturbations of specific molecules, e.g. by siRNA, give further insight into details of the molecular design of cellular motile machinery. A more specific focus of our current research is on the mechanisms of leading edge protrusion, which is driven by polymerization of actin. Lamellipodia and filopodia are the two major protrusive organelles with strikingly different design and different sets of molecular players. Although we were able to formulate the basic models for each of these organelles, many questions remain about their molecular design and specific roles of individual molecules. We address these questions in our research.

Recent Publications

Applewhite DA, Barzik M, Kojima S, Svitkina TM, Gertler FB, Borisy GG. (2007). Ena/VASP proteins have an anti-capping independent function in filopodia formation. Mol Biol Cell. Jul;18(7):2579-91. Epub 2007 May 2.

Svitkina T. (2007). Electron microscopic analysis of the leading edge in migrating cells. Methods Cell Biol. 79:295-319. Review. No abstract available.

Vignjevic D, Kojima S, Aratyn Y, Danciu O, Svitkina T, Borisy GG. (2006). Role of fascin in filopodial protrusion. J Cell Biol. Sep 11;174(6):863-75.

Yang C, Pring M, Wear MA, Huang M, Cooper JA, Svitkina TM, Zigmond SH. (2005). Mammalian CARMIL inhibits actin filament capping by capping protein. Dev Cell. 9(2):209-21.

Mejillano MR, Kojima S, Applewhite DA, Gertler FB, Svitkina TM, Borisy GG. (2004). Lamellipodial versus filopodial mode of the actin nanomachinery: pivotal role of the filament barbed end. Cell. 118(3):363-73.

Lab

Rotation Projects

Available projects include kinetic and structural analysis of particular cytoskeletal proteins during cell motility. We mostly concentrate on proteins involved in actin dynamics and leading edge protrusion. There are many proteins to choose from for an individual rotation project.

Changsong Yang, Research Specialist
Farida Korobova, Postdoctoral Fellow
Roman Gorelik, Graduate student