MICHAEL BOUTROS, with a background in molecular biology and genetics, studies signaling networks and their impact on cellular processes. After receiving his Ph.D. from the European Molecular Biology Laboratory, he did extensive postdoctoral research at Harvard Medical School. Within the Collaborative Research Center 1324, he is exploring the intricacies of Wnt signaling. Other projects are focusing on the its implications in colorectal cancer. Through the ERC Synergy Grant DECODE, he is dissecting genetic networks in  Drosophila, providing insights into cellular differentiation in complex tissues.