Cells must accurately grow centrioles to the correct length at the correct time in the cell cycle in order to maintain normal physiology. Michael Boemo, who recently joined the department as a research group leader, collaborated with the Raff lab (Dunn School of Pathology, University of Oxford) to show that centriole growth is controlled by oscillating levels of the Polo-like kinase Plk4. This oscillator is normally entrained to, but can operate autonomously of, the cell-cycle oscillator. The work, which was recently published in Cell, raises the intriguing question of whether the growth of other organelles is controlled this way. This interdisciplinary work combined microscopy, mathematical modelling, and machine learning approaches.
Paper: https://www.cell.com/cell/fulltext/S0092-8674(20)30613-9#%20
Boemo group page: https://www.boemogroup.org/