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Students

Daniel Seeler
MSc in Bioinformatics / Freie Universität Berlin

PharMetrX Research+ Program
PhD student year: 2019

University of PhD: University of Potsdam
Supervisor: Prof. Wilhelm Huisinga
Co-Supervisor: Prof. Charlotte Kloft
Mentoring I-Partner: AbbVie

PhD Project

Understanding vascular (dys)regulation by integrating endothelial cell morphology, blood vessel geometry and blood flow response signaling

Endothelial cells (ECs) make up the inner-most layer of blood vessels and are thus directly exposed to blood flow. In response to fluid shear stress, a tangential force created by blood flow, signaling pathways in ECs are activated leading to changes of EC morphology: ECs elongate and become parallel to blood flow. These morphological changes concur with a change of blood vessel geometry: If ECs elongate while keeping their areas constant, the blood vessel diameter decreases. As a result, fluid shear stress is altered, which will again activate signaling pathways in ECs.

 

In this project, we want to better understand this feedback cycle by employing two different modeling approaches:

1) We use EC junctional data to reconstruct a blood vessel segment and use it to analyze 3D EC morphology, hereby linking vessel geometry and EC morphology.

2) We employ qualitative systems biology modeling to predict EC shape from given combinations of blood flow dynamics and EC genotype.

 

Ultimately, our aim here is to improve our understanding of both physiological remodeling and vascular malformations that occur as a consequence of pathological remodeling.


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Publications

Please see the list of all publications and PhD theses.

Education

  • 03/2019: Entering PharMetrX
  • 07/2018-12/2018: Master’s thesis ‘Application of hybrid stochastic simulation algorithms in the context of HIV prophylaxis with the reverse transcriptase inhibitor efavirenz’, Junior Research Group Systems Pharmacology & Disease Control, Freie Universität Berlin
  • 02/2018-02/2019: Student Assistant, Junior Research Group Systems Pharmacology & Disease Control, Freie Universität Berlin
  • 09/2017-12/2017: Student Assistant, Einstein Center for Regenerative Therapies, Charité Berlin
  • 10/2016-02/2019: Master of Science in Bioinformatics, Freie Universität Berlin
  • 10/2015-09/2017: Student Tutor, Department of Mathematics and Computer Science, Freie Universität Berlin
  • 10/2013-09/2016: Bachelor of Science in Bioinformatics, Freie Universität Berlin