Cell adhesion is one of the fundamental components of morphogenetic processes.  Proper regulation of cell adhesion is required to maintain the integrity of epithelial tissues, as well as to allow cells to migrate from place to place during development and beyond.  As such, an understanding of the molecular mechanisms underlying cell adhesion and the evolution of these processes is vital to an understanding of the evolution of morphogenesis as a whole.  Elucidation of cell adhesive mechanisms in Nematostella can teach us a great deal about the evolution of this vital cell biological process.

The fact that we have a fully sequenced genome for Nematostella greatly facilitates this project.  Current work is aimed at identifying genes involved in cell adhesion and studying both their phylogenetic relationships as well as their expression dynamics and functions during development in Nematostella.