UCL Discovery Stage
UCL home » Library Services » Electronic resources » UCL Discovery Stage

Actomyosin controls planarity and folding of epithelia in response to compression

Wyatt, TPJ; Fouchard, J; Lisica, A; Khalilgharibi, N; Baum, B; Recho, P; Kabla, AJ; (2020) Actomyosin controls planarity and folding of epithelia in response to compression. Nature Materials , 19 pp. 109-117. 10.1038/s41563-019-0461-x. Green open access

[thumbnail of Whole document.pdf]
Preview
Text
Whole document.pdf - Accepted Version

Download (33MB) | Preview

Abstract

Throughout embryonic development and adult life, epithelia are subjected to compressive deformations. While these have been shown to trigger mechanosensitive responses such as cell extrusion and differentiation, which span tens of minutes, little is known about how epithelia adapt to compression over shorter timescales. Here, using suspended epithelia, we uncover the immediate response of epithelial tissues to the application of in-plane compressive strains (5–80%). We show that fast compression induces tissue buckling followed by actomyosin-dependent tissue flattening that erases the buckle within tens of seconds, in both mono- and multi-layered epithelia. Strikingly, we identify a well-defined limit to this response, so that stable folds form in the tissue when compressive strains exceed a ‘buckling threshold’ of ~35%. A combination of experiment and modelling shows that this behaviour is orchestrated by adaptation of the actomyosin cytoskeleton as it re-establishes tissue tension following compression. Thus, tissue pre-tension allows epithelia to both buffer against deformation and sets their ability to form and retain folds during morphogenesis.

Type: Article
Title: Actomyosin controls planarity and folding of epithelia in response to compression
Location: England
Open access status: An open access version is available from UCL Discovery
DOI: 10.1038/s41563-019-0461-x
Publisher version: https://doi.org/10.1038/s41563-019-0461-x
Language: English
Additional information: This version is the author accepted manuscript. For information on re-use, please refer to the publisher’s terms and conditions.
Keywords: Biophysics, Developmental biology, Tissues
UCL classification: UCL
UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > School of Life and Medical Sciences
UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > School of Life and Medical Sciences > Faculty of Life Sciences
UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > School of Life and Medical Sciences > Faculty of Life Sciences > Lab for Molecular Cell Bio MRC-UCL
UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > UCL BEAMS
UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > UCL BEAMS > Faculty of Maths and Physical Sciences
UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > UCL BEAMS > Faculty of Maths and Physical Sciences > London Centre for Nanotechnology
URI: https://discovery-pp.ucl.ac.uk/id/eprint/10081475
Downloads since deposit
8,056Downloads
Download activity - last month
Download activity - last 12 months
Downloads by country - last 12 months

Archive Staff Only

View Item View Item