Specialty Areas
Cell Motility
Breaching the boundaries of traditional disciplinary lines, the study of cell motility brings scientists who study plants, animals, and protists together, and spans both the cellular- and nano-scales. It’s a relatively new paradigm for the study of biological science and promises a wealth of new insights for basic research, medicine, and industry. The Department of Biological Sciences plays host to an interdisciplinary group of faculty known as the Purdue Motility Group, one of the nation’s largest collections of researchers who focus on the important biological role played by cell motility. Flexible, dynamic, and interactive, cells and their many moving parts are always on the go. It’s this sort of dynamic action that helps muscles flex and pull, neuronal networks branch and connect, plants to grow, and tiny biological molecular motors to move cargoes within a cell. It also drives the injection of toxins into tissues and the spread of viruses among host cells, as well as the terrifying ability of cancer cells to crawl closer to their next cellular victim. The key to fostering positive outcomes and limiting negative effects is to understand the way motility works in minute detail.
