A major open question in cell motility is how the dynein motors, which power the bending of cilia and flagella, are coordinated to give the periodic beating patterns that drive cell motion (Howard et al. 2022). We are using the single-celled alga Chlamydomonas reinhardtii as a model system to test different models of motor coupling (Geyer et al. 2016, Sartori et al. 2016, Geyer 2022).
Currently, we are analyzing waveforms of different mutants by high-speed light microscopy and high-resolution electron cryo-microscopy.