Our Research

Welcome to the Priess lab. Our lab studies the nematode, Caenorhabditis elegans (C. elegans) as a model system to understand the mechanisms that control development from a single-celled embryo into a complex, multi-cellular organism. We have worked on several aspects of C. elegans development, including morphogenesis (changes in cell shape that transform the round embryo into a long, thin "worm"), gastrulation (how the early embryo distinguishes inside from outside), specification of the germ line, and specification of cell fates during early embryogenesis.