Natural Sciences

The project aims to understand the functional role of heterochromatin regulation during early embryogenesis. Using a combination of epigenome editing tools and microscopy, the student will investigate the consequence of DNA repeated derepression on genome integrity in embryonic stem cells.

In nature, it is common to see seasonal changes in animal morphology and behavior. For example, squirrels and bears hibernate in winter; many birds migrate seasonally; and a wide range of animals from frogs to sheep mate and reproduce only during a fixed breeding season. These seasonal rhythms are adaptations of the animals to seasonally changing environment and are vital for animal survival.

Cancer develops when evolutionary forces act on mutated cells. When mutations and natural selection repeat over time, cancerous cell populations grow and spread. The resulting cancer cell population displays extensive genetic and functional heterogeneity within and across tumors. This diversity presents challenges to our understanding of tumor biology and ability to treat cancer, especially because the evolutionary dynamics and variables underlying the heterogeneity are often poorly understood.

Recent biological and biomedical research has featured the idea that living things are not “individuals” but collectives.  Gordon and Pradeu examine this question, combining the perspectives of a biologist who studies collective behavior in ant colonies and other natural systems and a philosopher of science who studies the immune system and the microbiome.  They offer a philosophical and scientific examination of the conditions under which something can be said to be an “individual” in the living world, and how, in certain circumstances, individuals

California’s mining and industrial history have led to an excessive build-up of mercury in the Bay Area. As one of the top ten pollutants of the world, this toxic heavy metal has troubling implications for human and environmental health. Although mercury is relatively well studied in aquatic ecosystems, less work has focused on terrestrial animals. However, we know that soil organisms, such as earthworms, accumulate mercury by consuming decaying plant and animal materials in the ground.

Large variations in seasonal temperature and rainfall threaten crop production, food prices, and food security at local to global scales. This project focuses on the impacts of climate variability on Europe’s agricultural regions, with an emphasis on wheat in France. Although France has a relatively small agricultural area, it has among the highest wheat yields in the world. Climateinduced shocks to crop production thus influence global prices for wheat and other commodities linked to wheat through markets.

The goal of the Stanford Solar Observatories Group is to study the origin of solar variability, characterize and understand the Sun's interior and the various components of magnetic activity. To achieve this goal, data analysis is performed from space missions. For a better understanding of the Sun and predictive capabilities for solar activity and space weather, these observations have to be accompanied by realistic numerical simulations of the subsurface flows and magnetic structures of the Sun.

In developed countries about 80% of the total population suffers from acute and 5–10% from permanent lower back pain (LBP). An early diagnosis is crucial to reduce patient suffering and lower the economic burden on the society. In a representative study for the western world, the cost of LBP in Switzerland was estimated at 2.6 billion Euros in 2005. Nevertheless, surprisingly little is known about geometrical abnormalities resulting in LBP. This is in part due to the subtle distinction between healthy geometrical variability and pathological abnormal deformities of the spine.