Flashy Trichoplax

In collaboration with Eduardo Moreno, group leader within the molecular oncology program of the CNIO (Spanish National Cancer Research Centre), we also study apoptosis and cell proliferation in Placozoa in order to unravel genetic mechanisms controlling these incidents in the basal Metazoa. Trichoplax’ small genome and simple organization enables molecular investigations in development and evolution, including searching for the basal mechanisms of cell-cell interactions like cell competition. Cell competition could become an important target for early tumor detection and cancer therapy. This work will highlight the suitability of Trichoplax as a model organism not only for evolutionary but also for medical (including cancer) research.