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Physical biology of human brain development
Silvia Budday1, Paul Steinmann1, Ellen Kuhl2
1Chair of Applied Mechanics, Department of Mechanical Engineering, University of Erlangen/Nuremberg Erlangen, Germany.
Frontiers in Cellular Neuroscience
|July 29, 2015
Summary
Physical forces significantly influence brain development and cortical folding. Understanding these forces aids in diagnosing and treating neurodevelopmental disorders like autism and schizophrenia.
Area of Science:
- Neuroscience
- Developmental Biology
- Biophysics
Background:
- Neurodevelopment involves complex genetic, environmental, and physical processes.
- Physical forces are increasingly recognized as crucial for shaping the human brain's surface morphology.
- The specific role of neuronal differentiation, migration, and connection in cortical folding forces is not fully understood.
Purpose of the Study:
- To review cellular mechanisms of neurodevelopment focusing on surface morphogenesis and cortical folding.
- To explore how physical forces contribute to the complex folding patterns of the human brain.
- To demonstrate the utility of computational modeling in understanding brain development.
Main Methods:
- Review of cellular mechanisms in neurodevelopment.
- Mapping the human neurodevelopmental timeline and associated cellular events.
- Application of computational modeling and physics-based models to analyze differential growth and cortical stresses.
Main Results:
- Physical forces play a central role in translating cellular mechanisms into brain surface morphology.
- Computational models can bridge cellular-level phenomena to organ-level form and function.
- Physics-based models quantify cortical stresses, predict folding patterns, and explain malformations.
Conclusions:
- Combining biology and physics advances understanding of human brain development.
- Physical forces are key to explaining cortical folding and malformations.
- This integrated approach promises early diagnostics and improved treatments for neurodevelopmental disorders.
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