RT Journal Article
SR Electronic
T1 Curling of epithelial monolayers reveals coupling between active bending and tissue tension
JF bioRxiv
FD Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory
SP 806455
DO 10.1101/806455
A1 Jonathan Fouchard
A1 Tom Wyatt
A1 Amsha Proag
A1 Ana Lisica
A1 Nargess Khalilgharibi
A1 Pierre Recho
A1 Magali Suzanne
A1 Alexandre Kabla
A1 Guillaume Charras
YR 2019
UL http://biorxiv.org/content/early/2019/10/16/806455.abstract
AB Epithelial monolayers are two-dimensional cell sheets which compartmentalise the body and organs of multi-cellular organisms. Their morphogenesis during development or pathology results from patterned endogenous and exogenous forces and their interplay with tissue mechanical properties. In particular, bending of epithelia is thought to results from active torques generated by the polarization of myosin motors along their apico-basal axis. However, the contribution of these out-of-plane forces to morphogenesis remains challenging to evaluate because of the lack of direct mechanical measurement. Here, we use epithelial curling to characterize the out-of-plane mechan ics of epithelial monolayers. We find that curls of high curvature form spontaneously at the free edge of epithelial monolayers devoid of substrate in vivo and in vitro. Curling originates from an enrichment of myosin in the basal domain that generates an active spontaneous curvature. By measuring the force necessary to flatten curls, we can then estimate the active torques and the bending modulus of the tissue. Finally, we show that the extent of curling is controlled by the interplay between in-plane and out-of-plane stresses in the monolayer. Such mechanical coupling implies an unexpected role for in-plane stresses in shaping epithelia during morphogenesis.