Regensburg 2022 – wissenschaftliches Programm

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BP: Fachverband Biologische Physik

BP 27: Statistical Physics of Biological Systems 2 (joint session BP/DY)

BP 27.2: Vortrag

Donnerstag, 8. September 2022, 15:15–15:30, H16

Guidance and optimization in branching morphogenesis — •Mehmet Can Ucar and Edouard Hannezo — Institute of Science and Technology Austria, Am Campus 1, 3400 Klosterneuburg, Austria

The development of branched, tree-like biological structures such as lung, kidney, or the neurovascular system has been a pivotal question in biology, physics and mathematics. Recently, many studies based on combinatorial, mechanical, or stochastic models explored local, selforganizing rules leading to branched morphologies in specific systems. However, in addition to local interactions, the growth of branched structures is also regulated globally by external chemical or mechanical guidance cues. In this talk, we present our recent theoretical framework that integrates local and global regulatory mechanisms of branching morphogenesis. Combining analytical theory and numerical simulations, we show that branch orientations follow a generic scaling law that depends on the strength of global guidance. Local interactions such as self-avoidance of branches, on the other hand, lead to denser, efficiently space-filling networks, with a minimal influence on the overall shape and territory. These quantitative predictions of the model are corroborated by experimental data on sensory neurons in the zebrafish caudal fin. Finally, we discuss effects of local interactions on optimal tiling of space in branched distribution networks such as in lymphatic vasculature.