SMICH investigates how signaling mechanisms impact homeostasis and cell fate transitions in cell-free, cell-based, and organismal systems. We are part of the Vienna BioCenter PhD program, a larger multidisciplinary Graduate School of the University of Vienna and the Medical University of Vienna.
Homeostasis can be described as the effort of an organism to maintain a state of inner balance despite external changes in its environment. This inner balance is necessary to preserves cell function and survival. But life is dynamic, and cells need to differentiate or respond to stress. During cell fate changes, homeostasis needs to be broken and a new state needs to be established, which the new cell will again seek to maintain for as long as it is appropriate. Perturbations in homeostasis have been linked to developmental disorders, muscular dystrophy, premature aging, neurodegeneration, and cancer.
SMICH investigates the mechanisms that impact homeostasis at the molecular, cellular, and organismal level, using state-of-the-art approaches and techniques. We focus on cell fate transition and on the mechanisms that remodel the expression pattern of a cell during these processes. These mechanisms range from controlling transcript levels (control of mRNA transcription and stability) to proteome remodelling by protein degradation (via the ubiquitin-proteasome system and autophagy). We focus on multidisciplinary PhD projects that offer outstanding opportunities for the scientific development of young scientists.