Dynamics Club
Launched in 2022, Dynamics Club is a UCLA-based forum for junior scientists to discuss nonlinear dynamics in biology and physiology. Starting from 2024, this is also the home for the Interoception Dynamics Affinity Group.
Our monthly seminars are mostly on Zoom, with hybrid access to in-person events. Campus visits are made possible by the Department of Integrative Biology and Physiology (IBP), Institute for Quantitative and Computational Biosciences (QCBio) and Brain Research Institute (BRI).
Currently, we have 342 members. If you’re new, sign up here!
Job opportunities:
- A postdoctoral position is available with Dr. Natalie Porat-Shliom at NIH/NCI (Microscopy)
- A postdoctoral position is available with Dr. Paul François at Université de Montréal (Details)
Key References (PDFs are available online):
Modeling Life by Alan Garfinkel, Jane Shetsov and Yina Guo (Teaching Materials)
Dynamics Club in June:
Epinephrine oscillation enhances the alertness of target cells to stress
Speaker: Dr. Mark Greenwood (Postdoctoral Fellow; Whitehead Institute)
Date and Time: June 25 (Thursday) at 11am Pacific Time / 2pm Eastern Time
Virtual Event on Zoom (Meeting ID: 941 8865 7435; Passcode: 214768)
Abstract:
Mammals constantly face stressors of varying intensity, and their cells must mount responses that scale accurately with severity. Stress hormones are central to this, yet sustained hormonal signaling drives desensitization. So how do cells stay alert and responsive to changing stress levels over time? In this talk, I’ll describe how natural ultradian oscillations of epinephrine, a major stress hormone, are key to maintaining cellular alertness and tunability. Using live single-cell imaging of human airway smooth muscle cells with a cAMP biosensor, receptor kinetic measurements, and mathematical modeling, we found that constant hormone stimulation blunts receptor signaling during acute stress. Oscillatory stimulation, by contrast, preserves alertness: receptors resensitize between cycles, replenishing the surface free-receptor pool. These oscillations also widen the signaling dynamic range, sharpening the cell’s ability to distinguish different stress intensities. Knocking out canonical desensitization machinery (GRK and β-arrestin) restored alertness even under constant stimulation, confirming the mechanism. Together, these findings reveal that hormone oscillations preserve cellular alertness while optimizing the tunability of stress signaling, enabling effective responses during both homeostasis and stress.
Scheduled Sessions:
| Date | Topic | Speaker(s) |
| Aug | Microglia coordinate activity-dependent protein synthesis in neurons through metabolic coupling | Drew Adler (NYU) |
| Sep | Sleep deprivation on cerebral vasomotion and brain pulsations | Dr. Sara M. U. Larsen (University of Copenhagen) |
| 2026 | Neurophysiological principles of reward | Dr. Annie Park (Oxford University) |
| 2026 | How Neural Heterogeneity Controls Network Function | Dr. Megan Kirchgessner (NYU) |
Past Events in 2026:
| Date | Topic | Speaker(s) | Materials |
| Jan 20 | Microdomain Metabolism in Pacemaker Myocytes: The Ca2+ Clock Drives the ATP Clock | Dr. Manuel Munoz Camus (UC Davis) | Pubmed |
| Feb 13 | Pulsed stimuli enable p53 phase resetting to synchronize single cells and modulate cell fate | Dr. Harish Venkatachalapathy (UMN) | Pubmed |
| Mar 6 | Pulsed stimuli enable p53 phase resetting to synchronize single cells and modulate cell fate | Dr. Richard Gast (Scripps Research) | Pubmed |
| Apr 10 | LNE Seminar: Leveraging small but persistent differences for detection in human health | Benjamin Smarr, PhD (UCSD) | Pubmed |
Past Events in 2025
Past Events in 2024
Past Events in 2023
Past Events in 2022