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Related Experiment Video

Updated: May 7, 2026

Building Finite Element Models to Investigate Zebrafish Jaw Biomechanics

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Published on: December 3, 2016

Mechanobiology and developmental control.

Tadanori Mammoto¹, Akiko Mammoto, Donald E Ingber

¹Vascular Biology Program, Boston Children's Hospital and Harvard Medical School, Boston, Massachusetts 02115;

Annual Review of Cell and Developmental Biology

|October 9, 2013

Summary

This summary is machine-generated.

Physical forces and extracellular matrix mechanics are crucial for tissue and organ development. These mechanical signals guide cell fate, pattern formation, and maintain tissue function throughout life.

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Area of Science:

Developmental Biology
Biophysics
Cell Biology

Background:

Morphogenesis involves cell self-assembly into functional tissues and organs.
Existing knowledge identifies genes and chemical cues but not the full picture of tissue construction.
The physical properties and 3D forms of tissues remain incompletely explained by chemical signals alone.

Purpose of the Study:

To review the role of physical forces in embryological development.
To highlight the contribution of extracellular matrix mechanics to tissue formation.
To explore the impact of mechanical signals on adult tissue homeostasis.

Main Methods:

Literature review of existing research on morphogenesis.
Analysis of studies investigating physical forces in embryogenesis.
Examination of research on extracellular matrix mechanics and cell behavior.

Main Results:

Physical forces are central to controlling cell fate switching and pattern formation.
Extracellular matrix mechanics significantly influence tissue development.
Mechanical signals play a role in maintaining tissue homeostasis in adults.

Conclusions:

Physical forces and matrix mechanics are essential, not just chemical cues, for understanding tissue and organ development.
These mechanical principles extend beyond embryogenesis to adult tissue maintenance.
A comprehensive understanding of morphogenesis requires integrating mechanical factors with genetic and chemical signaling.