Emerging imaging technologies allow us to visualize complex dynamics in multicellular systems that arise from the interplay of geometry, forces, and cellular activity, at unprecedented resolution. Yet, to gain mechanistic understanding, quantitative analysis and modeling are necessary and must go hand in hand. In this talk, I will first introduce image-based quantification and agent-based modeling approaches developed and used in our group, which provide quantitative information and mechanistic insights into multicellular dynamics.I will then focus on a biological application — newly discovered contraction waves in the extra-embryonic membranes of the red flour beetle, Tribolium castaneum. To quantitatively analyze these contraction waves, we developed an approach combining movement analysis, surface detection, tissue cartography, and movement-based segmentation. This approach revealed very complex contraction dynamics that vary in time and between different embryos.I will also show first results of an agent-based model of this system, in which we confined the cellular dynamics to a pre-defined surface. Our aim is to learn how mechanical cell-cell interactions, contractile cell behavior, and the curved geometry contribute to tissue rupture and retraction. While these results are preliminary, the integration of imaging and modeling has already provided key insights and will ultimately help uncover the fundamental processes underlying tissue organization in insect development.

Speaker : Franziska Matthäus

Host: Tim Liebisch (EMBL Barcelona)