Cellular patterns

"In recent decades, geometric and mechanical insight into patterned cellular and tissue structures has increased considerably. With the recent development of experimental techniques, especially microscopy and other methods of cell imaging and tracking, phenomenological models can be tested and improved. Cell and developmental biologists are increasingly aware of the importance of these models; the idea that at the level of cells some morphogenetic processes and structures are be interpreted almost entirely by mechanical forces is more and more appreciated. This book covers a broad selection of biological tissues characterized by spatial order and regularity, from the checkerboard pattern of light and dark cells in the Japanese quail oviduct to the spherical shape of the shell-like sea urchin embryo. The patterns are interpreted using mechanical models based, for example, on the forces that make raindrops spherical or wrinkle the skin on our fingers in the bath. After reading this book, the reader will understand better why these patterns appear"-- Read more... Abstract: "In recent decades, geometric and mechanical insight into patterned cellular and tissue structures has increased considerably. With the recent development of experimental techniques, especially microscopy and other methods of cell imaging and tracking, phenomenological models can be tested and improved. Cell and developmental biologists are increasingly aware of the importance of these models; the idea that at the level of cells some morphogenetic processes and structures are be interpreted almost entirely by mechanical forces is more and more appreciated. This book covers a broad selection of biological tissues characterized by spatial order and regularity, from the checkerboard pattern of light and dark cells in the Japanese quail oviduct to the spherical shape of the shell-like sea urchin embryo. The patterns are interpreted using mechanical models based, for example, on the forces that make raindrops spherical or wrinkle the skin on our fingers in the bath. After reading this book, the reader will understand better why these patterns appear" The mechanics underlying the form and structure of biological tissues is being increasingly investigated and appreciated, with new results appearing at a fast pace. Cellular Patterns covers the salient elements of this thriving field of research in a textbook style, including both historic landmark results and recent achievements. By building on concepts such as packing, confinement, surface tension, and elastic instabilities, the book explains the structure and the shape of sheet-like and bulk tissues by adapting the mechanics of continuous media to living matter. It reviews experimental results and empirical laws, and wherever possible, it discusses more than a single theoretical interpretation of a given phenomenon. The in-depth treatment of technical details, the many boxes summarizing essential physical and biological ideas, and an extensive set of problems make this book suitable as a complementary textbook for a graduate course in biophysics and as a standalone reference for students and researchers in biophysics, bioengineering, and mathematical biology interested in the mechanics of tissue.Features: Provides an overview of patterns and shapes seen in animal tissues in addition to an interpretation of these structures in terms of physical forces and processes Contains detailed analysis and a critical comparison of mechanical models of cells, tissues, and morphogenetic movements Presents a visually rich style which is accessible to physicists and biologists alike This book explores biological tissue patterns, such as the checkerboard pattern of light and dark cells in the Japanese quail oviduct, and interprets these patterns using models based, for example, on the forces that make raindrops spherical, enabling readers to understand why these patterns appear. Content: Cells as physical objects -- Inplane structure of singlelayer tissues -- Shape of epithelia -- Morphogenesis -- Bulk tissues -- Afterthoughts.