Focus on the female reproductive system – Dr. Stephanie Möllmert establishes research group at MPZPM
The female reproductive tract is a versatile and complex organ system. It transports eggs and sperm, protects early embryos, and renews tissue during the course of the cycle. Many of these processes involve considerable mechanical forces and sudden changes in the shape of the cells and tissues of the reproductive tract. Dr. Stephanie Möllmert’s team aims to measure these forces and deformations and investigate their fundamental importance to fertilization and early embryonic development, as well as women’s general health.
The female reproductive tract is a coordinated organ system in which several layers of cells and tissue work together: cilia move fluid, the muscles generate rhythmic contractions, and the mucus layer determines friction and flow properties. This finely tuned interaction enables the directed transport of germ cells, supports cycle-dependent tissue renewal, and contributes to mechanical resilience during pregnancy and childbirth. Under physiological conditions, the system controls large-scale transport processes. But how robust is this mechanism—and where does it reach its limits? This is precisely where the research of Dr. Stephanie Möllmert and her research group “Reproductive Mechanobiology” at the Max-Planck-Zentrum für Physik und Medizin (MPZPM) comes in. Their goal is to combine fundamental biophysical findings with advances in translational diagnostics and therapy.
The importance of mechanical processes is particularly evident in the example of the egg cell, whose journey from ovulation to implantation is characterized by a changing mechanical environment. Peristaltic waves of the musculature, the beating of the cilia, and the properties of the mucus layer drive transport in the fallopian tube, while the fold architecture and inner diameter shape local pressure and shear fields.
To decipher the physics and physiological significance of these processes, the team uses state-of-the-art methods: Brillouin microscopy, AFM-based force spectroscopy, rheology, high-resolution imaging, and controlled interventions. Möllmert’s team of scientists is thus creating spatially resolved, quantitative maps of mechanical properties. These enable the team to identify key influencing factors and parameter ranges for stable function.
In the long term, the new research group aims to develop a mechanobiological description of the female reproductive tract that complements existing biochemical and genetic approaches. Möllmert’s team wants to lay the foundation for developing mechanics-based biomarkers and risk assessment methods, defining criteria for patient-relevant model systems, and deriving design principles for diagnostics and interventions. The goal is to combine fundamental biophysical findings with translational approaches in diagnostics and therapy—in order to improve women’s reproductive and general health.
