Hugh Mulvey, a postdoctoral researcher at the GMI since 2020, investigated the evolution of multicellular structures in plants. He now prepares for an EMBO Postdoctoral Fellowship in Japan to explore plant cytokinesis.
Broadly, my research interest lies in understanding how multicellular structures, like those of land plants, form and how they evolved. In the Dolan lab, I investigated how ROP proteins, which are known for their role in cell polarization, regulate morphogenesis in the land plant Marchantia polymorpha. When we knock-out the Marchantia ROP gene, the formation of complex tissues and organs is compromised due to defects in polarized cell growth and cell division pattern, demonstrating the requirement of this cell polarity protein in forming morphologically complex plants. Additionally, we found that ROP function has remained highly conserved from the time we believe multicellularity first evolved in the algal ancestors of land plants, suggesting a connection with this evolutionary milestone.
I’ve always had an interest in living things, how they work, and how they came to be. This interest was partly nurtured by my primary school science teacher – one of the few teachers I’m still in touch with. Since joining the Dolan lab for my PhD, these abstract interests crystallized into my current research goals – investigating how a single plant cell gives rise to a complex multicellular body, and how multicellular plants evolved from unicellular algal ancestors.
The GMI stands out in terms of facilities, support, and the people who make it a really nice place to be. The support available saves a huge amount of time. It means you can focus more on your research and think about the big biological questions. Having spent a lot of time in the past pouring media plates, the service provided by the Media Kitchen is highly appreciated. Our lab technicians help us a lot with the generation of new plant lines and various experiments. The BioOptics team advises us when designing imaging experiments and is always on hand to help when using the confocal microscopes.
I’m moving to the National Institute for Basic Biology (NIBB) in Okazaki, Japan, supported by an EMBO Postdoctoral Fellowship. There I'll be investigating the mechanism of cytokinesis in land plants and how it evolved.
Over the years, I’ve become more aware of how important it is to get feedback from people. Try to connect with other people; they can often give you a lot of good advice and provide another perspective on your research. It’s also rewarding when you feel you have been able to do this for others.