Dresden 2026 – scientific programme
Parts | Days | Selection | Search | Updates | Downloads | Help
BP: Fachverband Biologische Physik
BP 3: Tissue Mechanics I
BP 3.7: Talk
Monday, March 9, 2026, 11:30–11:45, BAR/0205
Emergence of hyperuniform tiling in the developing retina — •Mehmet Can Ucar1 and Sandra Siegert2 — 1University of Sheffield, Sheffield, UK — 2Institute of Science and Technology Austria, Klosterneuburg, Austria
Efficient tiling and space-filling are fundamental design principles of living systems: from neurons and immune cells to vascular networks, these structures must optimize spatial coverage for proper function. Yet how cells collectively achieve non-redundant coverage during growth remains largely unexplored. Here, we combine a theoretical model of growing, branched cells with tunable local interactions and experimental analysis of developing retinal microglia. Our model shows that simple neighbor repulsion during growth is sufficient to drive non-redundant tiling, yielding a substantial increase in coverage with minimal territory overlap. Strikingly, this mechanism also leads to the emergence of a hyperuniform organization, where density fluctuations are progressively suppressed. Consistent with these predictions, microglia in the developing retina exhibit both efficient tiling and suppressed fluctuations, supporting the proposed mechanism for retinal patterning. Together, these findings reveal how local interactions can generate both efficient tiling and hyperuniform order, suggesting a general principle for tissue-wide optimization.
Keywords: Hyperuniformity; Branching morphogenesis; Tissue Optimization; Tiling; Space filling