[Embrio-list] Weekly Update: Science Signaling Paper Makes the Cover and the News; Input Poll for Summer Events; EMBRIO Mini-Symposium at ACSB Cell Bio

Wed Dec 3 11:55:06 EST 2025

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Dear EMBRIOphytes,

This week, we highlight a new paper in Science Signaling born from collaborations between the Staiger, Pienaar, Umulis, and Iyer-Pascuzzi labs, and well wishes to the EMBRIO team presenting a mini-symposium at the ASCB Cell Bio 2025 conference starting this weekend. Please take a few minutes this week to provide your input and preferences<https://nam04.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fpurdue.ca1.qualtrics.com%2Fjfe%2Fform%2FSV_bkIw8bHUboD9Qwu&data=05%7C02%7Cembrio-list%40ecn.purdue.edu%7Cec03c659845d449be46308de328cb659%7C4130bd397c53419cb1e58758d6d63f21%7C1%7C0%7C639003777147790945%7CUnknown%7CTWFpbGZsb3d8eyJFbXB0eU1hcGkiOnRydWUsIlYiOiIwLjAuMDAwMCIsIlAiOiJXaW4zMiIsIkFOIjoiTWFpbCIsIldUIjoyfQ%3D%3D%7C0%7C%7C%7C&sdata=VCRyYUNDKeb4Mld4cpORAU2u8Z6XqlwI295uXGsnYEw%3D&reserved=0> for a joint EMBRIO - Notre Dame NSF RECODE Symposium and Summer School next year (more details below and at the online poll).

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🚨 New Publication Alert 🚨

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EMBRIO’s interdisciplinary team investigating plant defense has an exciting paper out in Science Signaling (story  featured in Purdue News<https://ag.purdue.edu/news/2025/12/plant-first-responder-cells-warn-neighbors-about-bacterial-pathogens.html> and made the cover 🎉). “Local traveling waves of cytosolic Ca2+ elicited by defense signals or wounding are propagated by distinct mechanisms in Arabidopsis”. The paper unpacks discoveries advancing the field, that distinct patterns of Ca²⁺ waves in plants may contribute to stimulus-specific responses to mechanical vs. chemical perturbation, as well as single-cell vs. multicellular level responses. Mathematical modeling recapitulated the features demonstrated in the experimental studies.

Read the paper<https://nam04.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fdoi.org%2F10.1126%2Fscisignal.adw2270&data=05%7C02%7Cembrio-list%40ecn.purdue.edu%7Cec03c659845d449be46308de328cb659%7C4130bd397c53419cb1e58758d6d63f21%7C1%7C0%7C639003777147825644%7CUnknown%7CTWFpbGZsb3d8eyJFbXB0eU1hcGkiOnRydWUsIlYiOiIwLjAuMDAwMCIsIlAiOiJXaW4zMiIsIkFOIjoiTWFpbCIsIldUIjoyfQ%3D%3D%7C0%7C%7C%7C&sdata=NN%2FIwI1tykpeyLz7V5oJ7C7eIfII90Xs19V%2Bu81Tqjw%3D&reserved=0>
Zhang, W., Kumar, N., Helwig, J., Hoerter, A., Iyer-Pascuzzi, A.S., Umulis, D., Pienaar, E., and Staiger, C.J. (2025). Local traveling waves of cytosolic calcium elicited by defense signals or wounding are propagated by distinct mechanisms. Sci. Signal.18, 915. DOI: 10.1126/scisignal.adw2270<https://nam04.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fdoi.org%2F10.1126%2Fscisignal.adw2270&data=05%7C02%7Cembrio-list%40ecn.purdue.edu%7Cec03c659845d449be46308de328cb659%7C4130bd397c53419cb1e58758d6d63f21%7C1%7C0%7C639003777147839295%7CUnknown%7CTWFpbGZsb3d8eyJFbXB0eU1hcGkiOnRydWUsIlYiOiIwLjAuMDAwMCIsIlAiOiJXaW4zMiIsIkFOIjoiTWFpbCIsIldUIjoyfQ%3D%3D%7C0%7C%7C%7C&sdata=XNBRJN9HckGOVdULHQNvJe7Jg5HHbUb%2BMV0FUBSryv4%3D&reserved=0>

Huge thanks to all co-authors, collaborators, and funding teams who helped bring this to fruition: Weiwei Zhang<https://nam04.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.linkedin.com%2Fpreload%2F&data=05%7C02%7Cembrio-list%40ecn.purdue.edu%7Cec03c659845d449be46308de328cb659%7C4130bd397c53419cb1e58758d6d63f21%7C1%7C0%7C639003777147852921%7CUnknown%7CTWFpbGZsb3d8eyJFbXB0eU1hcGkiOnRydWUsIlYiOiIwLjAuMDAwMCIsIlAiOiJXaW4zMiIsIkFOIjoiTWFpbCIsIldUIjoyfQ%3D%3D%7C0%7C%7C%7C&sdata=l8BByVfss6gtqX%2FG%2FrwkNhZLOB2yp1mU7mOae011EyU%3D&reserved=0>, Nilay Kumar<https://nam04.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.linkedin.com%2Fpreload%2F&data=05%7C02%7Cembrio-list%40ecn.purdue.edu%7Cec03c659845d449be46308de328cb659%7C4130bd397c53419cb1e58758d6d63f21%7C1%7C0%7C639003777147866181%7CUnknown%7CTWFpbGZsb3d8eyJFbXB0eU1hcGkiOnRydWUsIlYiOiIwLjAuMDAwMCIsIlAiOiJXaW4zMiIsIkFOIjoiTWFpbCIsIldUIjoyfQ%3D%3D%7C0%7C%7C%7C&sdata=ASfP2ZBlwJx%2FujVPGISnDRCpqz%2BBBvHsJl9t4aBIXb4%3D&reserved=0>, Jessica Helwig<https://nam04.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.linkedin.com%2Fpreload%2F&data=05%7C02%7Cembrio-list%40ecn.purdue.edu%7Cec03c659845d449be46308de328cb659%7C4130bd397c53419cb1e58758d6d63f21%7C1%7C0%7C639003777147878885%7CUnknown%7CTWFpbGZsb3d8eyJFbXB0eU1hcGkiOnRydWUsIlYiOiIwLjAuMDAwMCIsIlAiOiJXaW4zMiIsIkFOIjoiTWFpbCIsIldUIjoyfQ%3D%3D%7C0%7C%7C%7C&sdata=tQ2H%2BQaox3w0e2MIhHHCqf4IyVYwZT9627mB2mrtK3g%3D&reserved=0>, Alexis Hoerter<https://nam04.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.linkedin.com%2Fpreload%2F&data=05%7C02%7Cembrio-list%40ecn.purdue.edu%7Cec03c659845d449be46308de328cb659%7C4130bd397c53419cb1e58758d6d63f21%7C1%7C0%7C639003777147891390%7CUnknown%7CTWFpbGZsb3d8eyJFbXB0eU1hcGkiOnRydWUsIlYiOiIwLjAuMDAwMCIsIlAiOiJXaW4zMiIsIkFOIjoiTWFpbCIsIldUIjoyfQ%3D%3D%7C0%7C%7C%7C&sdata=WxWGM4kJwsLHyReyTazBi4LUUMCK4wH0KOghq9Cruac%3D&reserved=0>, Anjali Iyer-Pascuzzi<https://nam04.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.linkedin.com%2Fpreload%2F&data=05%7C02%7Cembrio-list%40ecn.purdue.edu%7Cec03c659845d449be46308de328cb659%7C4130bd397c53419cb1e58758d6d63f21%7C1%7C0%7C639003777147903916%7CUnknown%7CTWFpbGZsb3d8eyJFbXB0eU1hcGkiOnRydWUsIlYiOiIwLjAuMDAwMCIsIlAiOiJXaW4zMiIsIkFOIjoiTWFpbCIsIldUIjoyfQ%3D%3D%7C0%7C%7C%7C&sdata=12Ncs693FWYRi59Rvi%2FfHVTJUg13qiKj5YCqVNkhcsI%3D&reserved=0>, David Umulis<https://nam04.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.linkedin.com%2Fpreload%2F&data=05%7C02%7Cembrio-list%40ecn.purdue.edu%7Cec03c659845d449be46308de328cb659%7C4130bd397c53419cb1e58758d6d63f21%7C1%7C0%7C639003777147916353%7CUnknown%7CTWFpbGZsb3d8eyJFbXB0eU1hcGkiOnRydWUsIlYiOiIwLjAuMDAwMCIsIlAiOiJXaW4zMiIsIkFOIjoiTWFpbCIsIldUIjoyfQ%3D%3D%7C0%7C%7C%7C&sdata=LEJuOwo7JHMFY7vu%2BG3ndyAbaJyM8fcfMI%2FPyNBquIw%3D&reserved=0>, Elsje Pienaar<https://nam04.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.linkedin.com%2Fpreload%2F&data=05%7C02%7Cembrio-list%40ecn.purdue.edu%7Cec03c659845d449be46308de328cb659%7C4130bd397c53419cb1e58758d6d63f21%7C1%7C0%7C639003777147929150%7CUnknown%7CTWFpbGZsb3d8eyJFbXB0eU1hcGkiOnRydWUsIlYiOiIwLjAuMDAwMCIsIlAiOiJXaW4zMiIsIkFOIjoiTWFpbCIsIldUIjoyfQ%3D%3D%7C0%7C%7C%7C&sdata=Ce%2Bfjq1hZVRYAAXPJNMYfS7DxNntwrwLwL8GPCoW5VI%3D&reserved=0>, Chris Staiger<https://nam04.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.linkedin.com%2Fpreload%2F&data=05%7C02%7Cembrio-list%40ecn.purdue.edu%7Cec03c659845d449be46308de328cb659%7C4130bd397c53419cb1e58758d6d63f21%7C1%7C0%7C639003777147945385%7CUnknown%7CTWFpbGZsb3d8eyJFbXB0eU1hcGkiOnRydWUsIlYiOiIwLjAuMDAwMCIsIlAiOiJXaW4zMiIsIkFOIjoiTWFpbCIsIldUIjoyfQ%3D%3D%7C0%7C%7C%7C&sdata=KyXJbiXaz6F2%2FY5VKcysB1YsYFFevci4%2FLuuLkFJ7Pg%3D&reserved=0>

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Caption: Purdue University’s Weiwei Zhang, senior research scientist in botany and plant pathology and a member of the Emergent Mechanisms in Biology of Robustness Integration and Organization (EMBRIO) Institute, prepares a sample for imaging at a confocal microscope. Researchers at Purdue found that a subset of epidermal cells in plant leaves serves as early responders to chemical cues from bacterial pathogens and communicate this information to neighbors through a local traveling wave of calcium ions. The properties of this local wave suggest that distinct mechanisms are used by plants to communicate specific types of pathogen attack.

🔬 Key Insights
•Rather than a uniform “on/off” Ca²⁺ spike, spatially and temporally structured waves were observed — a sign that cells encode more information in Ca²⁺ dynamics than previously thought.
•These Ca²⁺ waves are tied to activation of downstream signaling pathways that modulate immune response, offering a refined view of how innate immunity may be fine-tuned at the single-cell level.
•The new findings provide a framework for rethinking how immune cells interpret and respond to threats — not simply by the magnitude of Ca²⁺ increase, but by the pattern of Ca²⁺ dynamics.

🌍 Why It Matters
This work expands the conceptual underpinnings of immune signaling in plants by showing that spatiotemporal patterns of Ca²⁺ flux — not just overall levels — carry important functional information, we open the door to new ways of understanding immune regulation, and potentially, new therapeutic approaches that exploit Ca²⁺ dynamics.

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We Need Your Input: Dates, Plans, Topics for EMBRIO 2026 Summer School & Joint Symposium
A joint EMBRIO BII NSF - Notre Dame (RECODE NSF) one day symposium and poster session has been proposed focused on "Advancing Morphogenetic Biosciences and Bioengineering”, coupled with a multi-day training at the intersection of AI-levered computational modeling, quantitative biology, and bioengineering (e.g. https://sai.nd.edu/<https://nam04.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fsai.nd.edu%2F&data=05%7C02%7Cembrio-list%40ecn.purdue.edu%7Cec03c659845d449be46308de328cb659%7C4130bd397c53419cb1e58758d6d63f21%7C1%7C0%7C639003777147957929%7CUnknown%7CTWFpbGZsb3d8eyJFbXB0eU1hcGkiOnRydWUsIlYiOiIwLjAuMDAwMCIsIlAiOiJXaW4zMiIsIkFOIjoiTWFpbCIsIldUIjoyfQ%3D%3D%7C0%7C%7C%7C&sdata=lRvVdX5vfaMaEXHG%2Bs2s8fDyQVNlTAL1qZ9aiAckZyo%3D&reserved=0>). The Symposium will feature EMBRIO speakers, along with speakers from Notre Dame, and invited Key Notes. Proposed to be hosted at our partners at University of Notre Dame, South Bend, Indiana, EMBRIO will organize and help provide transportation and lodging for Purdue members to attend, as well as reimburse travel for EMBRIO trainees from our partner institutions to participate.

Please use this brief online poll to capture your availability, plans and preferences, as well as input for training topics: https://purdue.ca1.qualtrics.com/jfe/form/SV_bkIw8bHUboD9Qwu<https://nam04.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fpurdue.ca1.qualtrics.com%2Fjfe%2Fform%2FSV_bkIw8bHUboD9Qwu&data=05%7C02%7Cembrio-list%40ecn.purdue.edu%7Cec03c659845d449be46308de328cb659%7C4130bd397c53419cb1e58758d6d63f21%7C1%7C0%7C639003777147970002%7CUnknown%7CTWFpbGZsb3d8eyJFbXB0eU1hcGkiOnRydWUsIlYiOiIwLjAuMDAwMCIsIlAiOiJXaW4zMiIsIkFOIjoiTWFpbCIsIldUIjoyfQ%3D%3D%7C0%7C%7C%7C&sdata=aSBPHQ9EVVQYttIKtd%2FOlPmi1%2BQ6kYy9KqGSHTgkczM%3D&reserved=0>

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EMBRIO Mini-Symposium: Integrative Cell and Developmental Systems Biology - December 6-10
ASCB CellBio 2025<https://nam04.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.ascb.org%2Fcellbio2025%2F&data=05%7C02%7Cembrio-list%40ecn.purdue.edu%7Cec03c659845d449be46308de328cb659%7C4130bd397c53419cb1e58758d6d63f21%7C1%7C0%7C639003777147982253%7CUnknown%7CTWFpbGZsb3d8eyJFbXB0eU1hcGkiOnRydWUsIlYiOiIwLjAuMDAwMCIsIlAiOiJXaW4zMiIsIkFOIjoiTWFpbCIsIldUIjoyfQ%3D%3D%7C0%7C%7C%7C&sdata=eDSZsFZU9d9ywzQDvhIY5LgTZkI2eIL6K39e0ZXKUcA%3D&reserved=0>

EMBRIO Members have organized a mini-symposium at this year's ASCB Cell Bio Conference. This is the list of presenters and topics being presented:

• Aggregation and DNA binding of Dorsal/NF-κB in early embryos - Gregory Reeves
• Signal processing and robustness of the BMP network during zebrafish embryogenesis - Nissa Larson
• Reactive Oxygen Species Counteract Zebrafish Wound Contraction and Promote Wound Healing - Chang Ding
• Reverse engineering organ size and shape control through the integration of quantitative experiments and multi-scale computational modeling - Jeremiah Zartman
• Investigating cytoskeletal and cellular dynamics during morphogenesis in the zebrafish- Bakary Samasa
• AI-powered Acceleration and Parameter Tuning for Computational Modeling - Linlin Li

Brent T. Ladd, Senior Research Program Manager, EMBRIO Institute<https://www.purdue.edu/research/embrio/>
Weldon School of Biomedical Engineering, Purdue University
Office: Hall for Discovery Learning and Research, Ste. 203
207 S. Martin Jischke Drive
West Lafayette, IN 47907
laddb at purdue.edu

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