Cell and developmental biology
Understanding intricate mechanisms of life at the cellular and molecular level
We aim to understand basic mechanisms behind fundamental processes of living organisms, including cell division, organelle dynamics and homeostasis.
To address these topics, we combine bottom-up and top-down approaches with state-of-the-art biochemical and imaging techniques. Our research relies on a range of model systems, including the yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae, the nematode Caenorhabditis elegans, and mammalian cells.
New Paper published
New publication from Mokranjac Lab! We identify mitochondrial Hsp70 as a key mitochondrial quality control sensor and reveal a mechanism how mitochondrial proteostasis stress is sensed and converted into impaired import into the organelle. Another beautiful collaboration with the Lamb Lab with mitochondrial imaging by the Osman Lab.
For more, check out https://www.pnas.org/doi/10.1073/pnas.2526136123
PhD Thesis defense
March 2026: Congratulations to Alina Schreiner (Mikeladze-Dvali lab) with her PhD thesis defense and best wishes for you postdoc at NYU!
Two New Papers published
January 2026: Congratulations to Felix Thoma (Osman lab) and collaborator, with publishing a paper in PLOSGenetics!
January 2026: Congratulations to Simon Schrott (Osman lab) and collaborator, with publishing a paper in Nucleic Acids Research!
For more, check out:
https://journals.plos.org/plosgenetics/article?id=10.1371/journal.pgen.1011836 ,
https://academic.oup.com/nar/article/54/2/gkaf1390/8425365?login=false
Latest Publications
Thoma, F., Hagen, J., Rathberger, R., Padovani, F., Hörl, D., Schmoller, K., Osman, C.(2026) Local mitochondrial physiology defined by mtDNA quality guides purifying selection. PLOS Genetics 22(1): e1011836
Schrott, S., Marafelli, I.,Gerle, C., Bibinger, S., Bertgen, L., Marino, G., Schwenkert, S., Rathberger, R., Herrmann, J., Osman, C. (2026) Mrx6 binds the Lon protease Pim1 N-terminal domain to confer selective substrate specificity and regulate mtDNA copy number . Nucleic Acids Research 54(2): gkaf1390
Bertram N, Izawa T, Thoma F, Schwenkert S, Duvezin-Caubet S, Park SH, Wagener N, Devin A, Osman C, Neupert W, Mokranjac D. (2025) Delayed protein translocation protects mitochondria against toxic CAT-tailed proteins. Mol. Cell 85: 4082–4092. doi: 10.1016/j.molcel.2025.09.030.
Badrie S, Hell K, Mokranjac D. (2025) Dbi1 is an oxidoreductase and an assembly chaperone for mitochondrial inner membrane proteins. EMBO Rep. 26(4):911-928. doi: 10.1038/s44319-024-00349-6.
Schreiner A, Heim A, Pletschacher L, Alznauer LM, Schwenkert S, Wolff F, Zanin E, Mikeladze-Dvali T. (2025) PCMD-1 stabilizes the PCM scaffold and facilitates centriole separation. J Cell Biol. Dec 1;224(12):e202411107
Lebedev M, Chan FY, Rackles E, Bellessem J, Mikeladze-Dvali T, Xavier Carvalho A, Zanin E. Anillin mediates unilateral furrowing during cytokinesis by limiting RhoA binding to its effectors. (2025) J Cell Biol. Jun 2;224(6):e202405182.
Roussou, R., Metzler, D., Padovani, F., Thoma, F., Schwarz, R., Shraiman, B., Schmoller, K., Osman, C. Real-time assessment of mitochondrial DNA heteroplasmy dynamics at the single-cell level (2024) The EMBO Journal 43(22): 5340-5359
Funding
Cooperations
