Work

Searching for physical principles of morphogenesis

Year: 2025

Type: article

Abstract: In morphogenesis, biology uses physics to sculpt organs. Understanding this fascinating process requires interdisciplinary collaboration. We highlight recent work in the 'physics of development', with a focus on the interplay between quantitative experiments and mathematical theory. We argue that the role of theory in developmental biology lies in identifying and describing dynamical mechanisms - from the processing of positional information to mechanical pattern formation - independently of their molecular implementation. This level of abstraction provides a structured approach to embrace developmental complexity, but can propose experimental tests to verify its key tenets. We conclude with a sketch of future research perspectives in emerging synthetic morphogenesis systems, which may serve as a platform to distill principles of developmental self-organization.

Source: Development

DOI: 10.1242/dev.204894

Authors: Nikolas Claussen, Fridtjof Brauns, Sebastian J. Streichan

Institutions: University of California, Santa Barbara, Kavli Institute for Theoretical Physics

Language: English

Topic: Developmental Biology and Gene Regulation

Subfield: Molecular Biology

Field: Biochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology

Domain: Life Sciences

Open Access status: hybrid

Funders: National Science Foundation, Gordon and Betty Moore Foundation, University of California, Santa Barbara

Awards: Structured Active Matter, General Mechanisms of Morphogenesis on Multiple Scales, CAREER: In-Vivo Analysis of Active Mechanical Mechanisms Driving Animal Morphegenesis