Abstract

We investigate the role of morphological feedback effects in biological self-organization across scales. In the first part of the seminar, I will talk about a mechanochemical symmetry-breaking process that gives rise to robust bilateral organization. Combining theory, genetic perturbations and in vivo imaging, we studied the development and regeneration of the fluid-motion sensors in the zebrafish lateral line. We find that two interacting symmetry breaking events—one mediated by biochemical signalling and the other by cellular mechanics—give rise to precise rotations of cell pairs, which produce a mirror-symmetric polarity pattern in the receptor organ. In the second half of the seminar, I will talk about other examples of mechanochemical patterning, and give an outlook of our future work on the topic.