The Feric lab studies how biophysical interactions across multiple scales – molecular, organellar and cellular – contribute to proper cellular organization and how anomalies give rise to age-related diseases. To do so, we take an interdisciplinary approach within the framework of biomolecular phase transitions. With advanced, super-resolution light microscopy techniques and quantitative analysis, we probe the organization and function of biomolecules in droplet-like structures called biomolecular condensates. By identifying the mechanisms by which the cell maintains the organization and activity of its condensates over time, our work will shed light on new approaches to improve human health span and treat age-related diseases.

It is remarkable that after a seemingly miraculous feat of morphogenesis a complex metazoan should be unable to perform the much simpler task of merely maintaining what is already formed (Williams 1957).