The role of curvature in biological material formation
Biological materials develop into a variety of complex shapes, which can adapt to and even modify their physical environment. Examples relevant to the RTG include the role of tissue curvature in different insect epithelia. In particular, curvature-correlated nematic orientation of epithelial cells has been shown to be connected to directed cellular flows and anisotropic growth e.g., during Drosophila wing and egg chamber morphogenesis.
In this project, we will perform proof-of-principle experimental work and develop theoretical modeling approaches describing surfaces as thin sheets, using continuous descriptions. Thereby, we will address how curvature is created during tissue morphogenesis and how cells respond in terms of cell shape as well as alignment of cytoskeletal and ECM fibers to principal curvature. We will develop a surface liquid crystal theory of elongated cells in a tissue describing emergent collective behavior such as solid- or fluid-like properties, and morphodynamics accounting for active forces and emergent bending, stretching and growth.
The aim of this project is to address the role of curvature in the development of biological materials, investigating whether and how curvature can be not just a by-product of chemical, biological and mechanical processes but also a signal that co- determines them.