Abstract: The ribosomal content and the growth rate in bacteria have been observed to be linearly correlated. This relation has been previously explained phenomenologically by the allocation of ribosomes to the translation of different kinds of proteins. In this talk I will present a model that connects nutrient uptake, gene expression and cellular growth in a mechanistic fashion. Our model is able to reproduce the empirical relations, and it sheds light on the mechanisms that modulate cellular growth.
In a second part of the talk I will give an outlook on a project on skin barrier homeostasis that I have recently started. The skin barrier, the outermost layer of the epidermis, protects the body against harmful environmental stimuli. Its maintenance relies on a tight regulation of cellular processes such as proliferation, differentiation and inflammation. Developing a model of the epidermis that incorporates these processes, our goal is to identify the key mechanisms that lead to disease states as observed in atopic dermatitis and psoriasis.