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Leo Serra

@leoserra.bsky.social
1K followers 348 following 14 posts

Postdoc @ SLCU Cambridge | Plant Morphogenesis | Cell Division | Cell Growth | Mechanobiology | Microscopy

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Reposted by Leo Serra
bioRxiv Plant Bio @biorxiv-plants.bsky.social · 13/09/2026
Live confocal imagining of cellular touch responses upon local quantifiable mechanical stimulation in plant cells www.biorxiv.org/content/10.64898/20…
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bioRxiv Plant Bio @biorxiv-plants.bsky.social · 13/09/2026
Plant Acupuncture: a low-cost and open-source device for local mechanical stimulation www.biorxiv.org/content/10.64898/20…
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Reposted by Leo Serra
bioRxiv Plant Bio @biorxiv-plants.bsky.social · 08/09/2026
Cell Geometry and Junction Arrangement Define the Mechanical Robustness of Plant Tissues www.biorxiv.org/content/10.64898/20…
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Arvid Herrmann 🍃 @arvidhema.bsky.social · 08/09/2026
Very happy to see this work out as a preprint! 🌽🌱 How are shoot stem cells specified in the maize embryo? We uncover a small RNA-driven morphogenic circuit linking positional information with auxin, cell wall mechanics & cell division patterning. Check it out 👇 www.biorxiv.org/content/10.6...
biorxiv.org
Specification of embryonic shoot stem cells via a small RNA-driven morphogenic circuit
The specification of embryonic stem cells capable of self-renewing and differentiation into virtually any cell type, is one of the most consequential events in the development of a multicellular organ...
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Mariana Romeiro Motta @mromeiromotta.bsky.social · 08/09/2026
PhD position available (start 2027) in my group at TUM! We study how mechanical stress controls cell cycle progression and cytoskeletal dynamics in plants, combining cell biology, biochemistry and biophysics. CV + cover letter to mariana.romeiro-motta@tum.de. RTs welcome! #PlantSciJobs
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Development @dev-journal.bsky.social · 04/09/2026
The role of geometry in morphogenesis Read this Review from our special issue #DevSIextracellular by Ryan Harrison, Olivier Hamant and @timesaunders.bsky.social. journals.biologists.com/dev/article/...
Role of geometry in shaping tissues. Multiple factors, including cell shape (top left), boundary constraints (top right), topological inputs (bottom left) including from different cell alignment defects (±1/2) and biophysical factors (bottom right) impact how the final tissue form emerges (centre). Centre shows images of a 48 h neuruloid (left; magenta, DAPI; green, actin) and a young Arabidopsis flower (right) treated with oryzalin (depolymerised microtubules) thus showing isotropic growth, but no defect in patterning (organs are still initiated in the right position).
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Avilash Singh Yadav @morpholosophist.bsky.social · 02/09/2026
Very happy to share that our work "Growth directions and stiffness across cell layers determine whether tissues stay smooth or buckle" is now out @currentbiology.bsky.social www.sciencedirect.com/science/arti... Special thanks to my postdoctoral mentor @roederlab.bsky.social and all the authors!
sciencedirect.com
Growth directions and stiffness across cell layers determine whether tissues stay smooth or buckle
Nature exhibits organs of various shapes and forms, ranging from smooth to undulated morphologies. How cells coordinate their growth to produce smooth…
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bioRxiv Plant Bio @biorxiv-plants.bsky.social · 22/08/2026
A triple fluorescent marker for live imaging of plant cell morphogenesis www.biorxiv.org/content/10.64898/20…
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COST Action PlantWallK @plantwallk.org · 20/07/2026
📢 Two postdoc positions available in @mc-caillaud.bsky.social's group (RDP lab, ENS de Lyon), part of an ERC Consolidator. Project: how plant cells orient their division, combining cell biology, molecular genetics, and mechanical modelling. 📅 Deadline: 1 Oct 26 | Start: Nov 26 onwards Details 🧵👇
Recruitment flyer for two postdoc-funded positions in Marie-Cécile Caillaud's group (RDP laboratory, ENS de Lyon, France). Across the top run six scientific images: a line drawing of an Arabidopsis seedling with roots; a 3D digital reconstruction of a shoot apical meristem with orange and purple sectors marking cell lineages; a confocal microscopy image of plant tissue with green cell outlines and red/orange fluorescent nuclei; two paired 3D cell models in orange/green and yellow/purple showing division plane geometry; and a fluorescence microscopy image of a dividing cell with yellow microtubule-like structures and cyan nuclei on a dark background. Below, the title reads "Two Postdoc-funded positions" with an ERC logo, followed by "Deadline: 1st of Oct 2026" and "Starting date: Nov 2026 and onwards" in a bordered box. The body text is organised into sections: PROJECT (describing research into how plant cells orient their division, combining cell biology, molecular genetics, and multiscale mechanical modelling, with a link to the team website), CANDIDATE (looking for motivated candidates with a strong publication record, prior expertise in plant cell biology or biophysics as a plus, working language English), ENVIRONMENT (describing the ERC Consolidator project, the RDP laboratory hosted at ENS de Lyon, an international and gender-balanced working environment, and the city of Lyon), and RECENT PUBLICATIONS (three pinned references: Goldy et al. 2026 in Science Advances, Gascon et al. 2025 in Current Biology, and Lebecq et al. 2023 in Science Advances). An envelope icon box at the bottom right gives instructions to send a single PDF (cover letter, short summary of previous research, CV with publications, and contact details for two to three referees) to marie-cecile.caillaud@ens-lyon.fr.
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Michael Raissig @michaelraissig.bsky.social · 08/07/2026
🌾 Every grass leaf shares the same repeating short-long cell pattern in its epidermis. Our new #preprint identifies the protein that builds it. 🔬🧬 📄 preprint: www.biorxiv.org/content/10.6... 🧵⬇️ 1/11
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Nathan German @nathan-german.bsky.social · 02/06/2026
What is an edge? Why is this geometrical domain so crucial during plant morphogenesis? Read our review, co-written with Antoine Chevalier and @ckirchhelle.bsky.social to find out! authors.elsevier.com/c/1nAnf4tPF4...
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Sainsbury Laboratory Cambridge University (SLCU) @slcuplants.bsky.social · 27/05/2026
Mechanical forces & cell shape guide how plant stomata form🥬👄 @leoserra.bsky.social & Euan Smithers from @robinsonsci.bsky.social's team uncover how the interplay between cell shape & mechanical stress influences the orientation of stomata doi.org/10.1016/j.ce... www.slcu.cam.ac.uk/news/mechani...
Time-lapse images of adaxial side of PM-YFP cotyledons showing new stomatal divisions occurring between 1 and 2 days after germination (DAG). Newly formed stomata are highlighted in magenta at 2DAG. Imaging by Leo Serra.
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Marie-Cécile Caillaud @mc-caillaud.bsky.social · 18/02/2026
What a treat to see the work from Camila Goldy @camilagoldy.bsky.social et al., @rdplab.bsky.social @ensdelyon.bsky.social now published 🫶 www.science.org/doi/10.1126/...
science.org
The actin cytoskeleton is required to maintain plant cell division orientation against cellular geometry
Actin guides plant cell division, shaping tissues in ways that defy geometric constraints.
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Marie-Cécile Caillaud @mc-caillaud.bsky.social · 25/08/2025
🌱✂️ How do plant cells decide where to divide? Our work shows that actin can override the geometric rules—guiding cells to divide in alternative orientations. #PlantScience #CellBiology #Arabidopsis @camilagoldy.bsky.social @rdplab.bsky.social www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1...
biorxiv.org
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bioRxiv Plant Bio @biorxiv-plants.bsky.social · 17/07/2025
Brassinosteroid controls leaf air space patterning non-cell autonomously by promoting epidermal growth www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1101/202…
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CharrierLab @brownalgaedev.bsky.social · 16/07/2025
Asymmetric cell division: (re) visiting the concept in light of brown algae 🧲review in Curr Op Plant Biol doi.org/10.1016/j.pb...
doi.org
Redirecting
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Prakash Lab at Stanford @prakashlab.bsky.social · 29/05/2025
Incredible Molly Herring wrote a story on the philosophy behind the work we do at PrakashLab. Wonder & curiosity.. even more important to share when every day is a new attack on the fundamental principles of scientific explorations. Thanks @quantamagazine.bsky.social for this interaction.
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Fabien Miart @fabienmiart.bsky.social · 09/05/2025
🚀 Big news! I’m happy to share with you the launch of MIAtecs’ brand-new website: www.miatecs.com 🌿 If you work in plant #phenotyping, #microscopy, or #AI-based image analysis, especially around #stomata, #trichomes, or other hard-to-capture traits, it’s worth a visit! 😊
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Reposted by Leo Serra
Mary Williams @PlantTeaching @plantteaching.bsky.social · 08/05/2025
Good article on academic bullying (it's not just a German problem). www.nature.com/articles/d41...
nature.com
Can Germany rein in its academic bullying problem?
Researchers and administrators are exploring ways to restructure a rigid hierarchy that can breed power abuses.
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Reposted by Leo Serra
Teng Zhang | 张腾 @tengzhanguh.bsky.social · 01/02/2025
Please Repost! We are offering a three-year fully funded doctoral researcher position to study how floral meristem patterning in woodland strawberry, and how it implicates the diversification in floral ground plans in Angiosperm flowers. jobs.helsinki.fi/job/Helsini-...
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Jim Rowe @botanicaljim.bsky.social · 14/03/2025
The Rowe lab is recruiting a #PlantScience PhD student for 2025! You'll use our new ABACUS FRET biosensors to map the leaf #AbscisicAcid accumulations at low humidity in Arabidopsis, wheat and rice to understand how ABA regulates stomatal dynamics. #PhDposition www.findaphd.com/phds/project...
A grey coloured Arabidopsis leaf epidermis, with black cell walls. Each cells has a colourful blobs - a nuclear localised fluorescent ABA sensor, with warm colours indicating high concentrations, and cooler colours indicating lower concentrations.
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CharrierLab @brownalgaedev.bsky.social · 10/01/2025
Stunning corset-like structure made of cell wall #alginate might restrict lateral growth in #kelp embryos. ➡️ www.nature.com/articles/s41...
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Stéphanie Robert @srobertgroup.bsky.social · 11/12/2024
Please spread the word, 2-year-postdoc position in my group to understand fate determination. www.upsc.se/jobs/6548-po...
upsc.se
Umeå Plant Science Centre - Postdoc fellowship to work on plant cell fate determination
Umeå Plant Science Centre - A centre of excellence for experimental plant biology in Umeå Sweden. ©UPSC
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Leo Serra @leoserra.bsky.social · 05/12/2024
More details on our recent pre-print: Alignments of stomata have been described in many species, here are 2 examples: Thym from my kitchen, and Leucadendron from a 1935 paper (Smith 1935 on the orientation of stomata) What is directing these alignments is unknown 1/12 doi.org/10.1101/2024...
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Leo Serra @leoserra.bsky.social · 03/12/2024
Stomata form alignments in many species, we do not know how. So, we forced a lot of cells to differentiate into stomata, and we watched them dividing, with modelling, and mechanical perturbations, we conclude that they were aligned by mechanical stress derived from differential growth
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Reposted by Leo Serra
Oxford Biology @biology.ox.ac.uk · 26/11/2024
How does the squirting cucumber squirt? New research has found the answer! It turns out that four key components make up a finely tuned seed dispersal system 👇 bit.ly/4g5stil
High speed video showing the ejection of seeds by the squirting cucumber (Ecballium elaterium). The video is captured at 8,600 fps, and is slowed down around 350 times.
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Reposted by Leo Serra
Jim Rowe @botanicaljim.bsky.social · 18/11/2024
The Rowe lab is recruiting a #PlantScience PhD student for 2025! You'll use our new ABACUS FRET biosensors to map the dynamic leaf #AbscisicAcid accumulations at low humidity in Arabidopsis, wheat and rice. #PhDposition www.findaphd.com/phds/project...
A grey coloured Arabidopsis leaf epidermis, with black cell walls. Each cells has a colourful blobs - a nuclear localised fluorescent ABA sensor, with warm colours indicating high concentrations, and cooler colours indicating lower concentrations.
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Reposted by Leo Serra
Roxane Spiegelhalder, PhD @roxyspi.bsky.social · 06/05/2024
Excited to share our new #preprint on BdMUTE and its dual role in recruiting subsidiary cells (SCs) and orienting guard cell (GC) division in #Brachypodium: biorxiv.org/content/10.1... We set out to answer questions about how BdMUTE influences grass stomatal development: (1/8)
Schematic displaying stomatal development in wild type (WT). Stomatal development starts with guard mother cell (GMC; blue) formation. BdMUTE is expressed in the GMC (light blue nucleus) and moves into the lateral cells (light yellow nucleus) to establish subsidiary mother cells (SMCs). SMCs then polarize (yellow gradient) and divide asymmetrically to form lateral SCs (yellow). Finally, the GMC divides symmetrically to generate two GCs (light green), which form a pore and mature into the characteristic dumbbell shape (dark green). Open questions regarding BdMUTE’s roles and mechanisms are indicated.
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CharrierLab @brownalgaedev.bsky.social · 20/02/2024
3-year post-doc on control of cell division orientation in brown algae, in Charrier's group @ IGFL, ENS Lyon, France (bsky.app/profile/igfl...) Job description : ->https://rb.gy/dt0aq9
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UK Plant Biomech @ukplantbiomech.bsky.social · 15/12/2023
Don't forget to register for UK Plant Biomechanics Day!  Deadline: 18 December 2023 (40 GBP fee payment is not due until February). Register here: www.slcu.cam.ac.uk/uk-plant-bio....  Organised by @robinsonsci.bsky.social, @slcuplants.bsky.social, Naomi Nakayama. #UKPlantBioMech
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bioRxiv Plant Bio @biorxiv-plants.bsky.social · 15/12/2023
Modulation of cell differentiation and growth dynamics underlie the shift from bud protection to light capture in cauline leaves www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1101/202…
biorxiv.org
Modulation of cell differentiation and growth dynamics underlie the shift from bud protection to light capture in cauline leaves https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1101/2023.12.13.571562v1
Plant organs have evolved into diverse shapes for specialized functions despite emerging as simple p
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Marc Somssich @somssich.bsky.social · 14/12/2023
📜 Plant plasmodesmata bridges form through ER-driven incomplete cytokinesis 🧑‍🔬 Ziqiang P. Li, Hortense Moreau, Emmanuelle M. Bayer, et al. 📔 @biorxiv-plants.bsky.social 🔗 www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1... #️⃣ (Feeds) #PlantScience #PlantDevelopment #Plasmodesmata #PlantCellBio
biorxiv.org
Plant plasmodesmata bridges form through ER-driven incomplete cytokinesis
bioRxiv - the preprint server for biology, operated by Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory, a research and educational institution
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Will Ratcliff @wcratcliff.bsky.social · 06/11/2023
Cuboidal cell packing is a common yet understudied route to multicellularity. In work led by @rpineau.bsky.social and Ozan Bozdag we explore its origin as a multicellular geometry capable of supporting a transition in individuality using fission yeast. 1/14 www.biorxiv.org/content/14.1...
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Sovanna Tan @sovtan.bsky.social · 01/11/2023
Could be of good help, even in plants!
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