Excited to announce Physics of Living Matter 19! To be held in Cambridge 24-25th September 2026:

www.plm-symposium.org

Pictures from Fanny Martinez Real and Stefan Mundlos🙏

This year, the annual symposium of my Chaire @college-de-france.fr will be on The Evolution of Developmental Mechanisms. An impressive lineup of speakers and weirds animals, including humans. Free entrance and coffee breaks. Come, have a seat, relax and enjoy the best possible basic science🤘RT🙏

Just published in @science.org 🚀

By controlling how cells align, we show that living nematic tissues can be programmed to generate forces and fold into predictable 3D shapes.

A new platform for tissue engineering and the design of smart active materials! 🫆

www.science.org/doi/10.1126/...

Hand-traced cell tracking of convergent extension cell movements in the Xenopus mesoderm.

#DBfeature #DBreview

Quantifying convergent extension: Shih and Keller's quintessential work in developmental cell biology

by Robert Huebner, John Wallingford @jbwallingford.bsky.social
www.sciencedirect.com/science/arti...

How can we learn tissue mechanics directly from cell patterns and images?

In our new preprint, we introduce VertAX, a differentiable vertex-model framework in JAX for simulating epithelia, inferring parameters, and designing target tissue behaviors.

shorturl.at/PUzT0
1/5

Physiological architecture and evolutionary origins of cellular adaptability www.biorxiv.org/content/10.64898/2026.04...

Data-Driven Biological Modeling — CSM 2026 - Centuri Living Systems Data-Driven Biological Modeling CENTURI Scientific Meeting – 2026 The Event – CENTURI Scientific Meeting CENTURI is pleased to announce the 2026 Edition of its Scientific Meeting, once again bringing ...

📢 Registrations are open for the 𝐂𝐄𝐍𝐓𝐔𝐑𝐈 𝐒𝐜𝐢𝐞𝐧𝐭𝐢𝐟𝐢𝐜 𝐌𝐞𝐞𝐭𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝟐𝟎𝟐𝟔!

🗓️ Oct 26–30, 2026
📍Institut d'Études Scientifiques de Cargèse, Corsica

Topic: 𝐃𝐚𝐭𝐚-𝐃𝐫𝐢𝐯𝐞𝐧 𝐁𝐢𝐨𝐥𝐨𝐠𝐢𝐜𝐚𝐥 𝐌𝐨𝐝𝐞𝐥𝐢𝐧𝐠

𝐌𝐨𝐫𝐞 𝐢𝐧𝐟𝐨: centuri-livingsystems.org/csm-2026/

evodevmec2026.sciencesconf.org

"Roadmap for EvoDevoMec", 
Nov. 2nd - 5th, 2026, Université Paris Cité.

Mosaic gastruloids reveal a temporal restriction for developmental cell competition - Nature Cell Biology Frenster et al. utilize mosaic mouse gastruloids as a model of cell fitness and competition, identifying a temporal window between primed pluripotency and early gastrulation during which cell competit...

🥳 I am happy to share our latest manuscript published in @natcellbio.nature.com We use #Gastruloids to study #CellCompetition during early mammalian development and find not only that this is highly pronounced in our system but also tightly restricted in time. (1/12) www.nature.com/articles/s41...

Symmetry breaking, germ layer specification and axial organisation in aggregates of mouse embryonic stem cells Mouse embryonic stem cells (mESCs) are clonal populations derived from preimplantation mouse embryos that can be propagated in vitro and, when placed into blastocysts, contribute to all tissues of the...

Symmetry breaking, germ layer specification and axial
organisation in aggregates of mouse embryonic stem cells journals.biologists.com/dev/article/... - what a gorgeous paper this is! (2014 from @amartinezarias.bsky.social and colleagues - introducing 'gastruloids'!)

TiFM2.0 – versatile mechanical measurement and actuation in live embryos Summary: Precisely-controlled, sensitive cantilevers measure and perturb tissue forces and mechanical properties in their native locations in live embryos, providing a useful tool to study tissue mech...

So excited to share that my 1st paper is published!! Read all about how to manipulate the #MechanicalProperties of tissues using our custom built TiFM! journals.biologists.com/dev/article/...

I'm happy to present our new tool, EpiCure, a napari plugin to ease correction of segmentation and tracking of epithelia movies, developed in @devstempasteur.bsky.social

Briefly, after organ injury, 100 milliseconds, we detected collective changes in membrane potential at the tissue level. This is so far the earliest detected wound-response!! This electric signal sparks the formation of a tissue-wide calcium wave👇

Excited to share our new article, ‘Mechanical regulation of cuboidal-to-squamous epithelial transition in the Drosophila developing wing’, now online in Current Biology.
doi.org/10.1016/j.cu...

There’s also a great accompanying Dispatch:
doi.org/10.1016/j.cu...

#MatrixMechanics #DevBio

Join IGH as Group Leader - IGH The Institute of Human Genetics invites applications for a Principal Investigator position in its main research areas. Read more...

We are looking for a new group leader to join the IGH (Montpellier, France). I can’t wait to meet my future colleague! Apply :-) More infos here: igh.cnrs.fr/join-igh-as-...

'La science n'est pas une opinion'

Fig. 1. Basic steps of cell migration. (a) Mesenchymal cell migration. Cells are attached to the extracellular matrix (ECM) via integrins and focal adhesions (FA). Actin polymerization at the leading edge extends filamentous actin (F-actin) protrusions inducing a front-rear polarization. New FA adhesions attach the protrusions to the ECM followed by F-actin rearward movement, known as actin retrograde flow. Disassembly of rear FA and myosin II contraction at the back of cell generate the pushing force to move the cell forward. (b) Amoeboid cell migration. Cells do not form adhesions with the ECM or other cells. Under confinement, amoeboid cells form membrane blebs, also known as pseudopodia, inducing a front-rear polarization. Actin retrograde flow is initiated by mechanical forces, such as confinement. Myosin II contraction at the back of cell generates the pushing force to move the cell forward.

Fig. 2. MS ion channel families involved in cell migration. (a) Transient receptor potential channels (TRP). TRP channels form 6 transmembrane (TM) domains. TM 1-2 are represented in cyan, TM 3-4 in orange and TM 5-6 in magenta. The pore forming domain is formed between TM5 and TM6. Each subfamily of TRP channels contains unique domains in the cytoplasmic N- and C- termini. TRPC channels have three ankyrin repeats and a coiled-coil domain in the N-terminus. A TRP domain, which has gating functions, a calmodulin and IP3R binding domains are localized in the C-terminus. TRPV channels have six ankyrin repeats in the N-terminus. A TRP domain, a calmodulin and PIP2 binding domains are localized in the C-terminus. (b–b′) Piezo1 channels. (b) Each Piezo1 channel has at least 26 TM regions and up to 40 TM domains. The TM domains form three defined structures, known as blades. Each blade is colour coded in cyan, orange and magenta for easier representation. The carboy-terminal extracellular domain (CED) is located directly on top of the pore forming domain and is important for ion selectivity (Zhao et al., 2016). (b′) Due to its large size, a Piezo1 channel induces a small curvature to the plasma membrane, when force is applied the plasma membrane is stretched, thereby opening the Piezo1 channel.

Fig. 3. Role of MS ion channels in cell migration. (a) Actin protrusions. MS ion channels can regulate the extension of actin-based protrusions through PI3K signalling. Ca2+ binding to PI3K leads to the activation of several Rac1-GEFs, including P-Rex1 and SWAP-70, Vav1, Sos1. Rac1-GEFs mediate the transition from inactive Rac1-GDP to Rac1-GTP, leading to actin polymerization and protrusion extension. (b) RhoA activation. The Ca2+ sensitive Pyk2 kinase is activated after MS ion channel opening. Pyk2 activates PDZ-RhoGEF which mediates the transition from inactive Rho-GDP to Rho-GTP, leading to Myosin II phosphorylation. Global Myosin II contraction leads to inhibition of cell migration. (c) Chemotaxis. The presence of a chemoattractant agent leads to re-localization of TRPC1 and TRPC6 MS ion channels to the direction of the chemoattractant signal. Localized Ca2+ can regulate actin remodelling via PI3K or induce Ca2+ flickers at the leading edge of the cell, promoting directional cell migration. (d) Focal adhesion (FA) disassembly. MS ion channels regulate FA disassembly via calpain, a Ca2+ dependant protease that mediates FA degradation. Restricted calpain activity at the rear of the cell mediates specific FA disassembly at the back of the cell, promoting cell migration. (e) Yap/Taz nuclear localization. Piezo1 activation is correlated with Yap translocation from the cytoplasm to the nucleus, leading to Yap mediated gene transcription. However, the biochemical signals downstream of Piezo1 have not been identified yet. Dashed line represents unknown signalling proteins.

Many ion channels eg. TRP, Piezo are mechanically sensitive, meaning they can be activated/deactivated by mechanical stimuli such as membrane curvature or substrate stiffness. In this thorough review from the Mayor lab, they discuss how these channels regulate cell migration.
doi.org/10.1016/j.cd...

The I2BC is now accepting applications for new group leader positions. Explore our research at the Institute in our Journal:
www.scoop.it/u/institut-d...
Deadline: April 22, 2026
@i2bcparissaclay.bsky.social

Regulation of YAP activity by nuclear G-actin binding Abstract. The Yes-associated protein YAP belongs to the TEAD (TEA/ATTS domain) transcriptional co-activators that shuttle between the cytoplasm and the nuc

Hong's @bdyxwh.bsky.social paper is out with help from @sshamphavi.bsky.social and @archaellum.bsky.social. We discovered a link between nuclear actin and YAP/TAZ: G-actin forms a complex with YAP-TEAD for transcription.
academic.oup.com/nar/article/...

Reconstituting Mouse Embryogenesis Ex Utero from Gastrulation to Fetal Development Reveals Maternally Independent Metabolic Programs www.biorxiv.org/content/10.64898/2026.03...

We are excited to be recruiting into 3 Associate Professorship's in @oxfordbiochemistry.bsky.social. Come join us as a colleague and benefit from our vibrant and multidisciplinary environment. Reach out to me if you have any questions. Please repost! (tinyurl.com/48deybuu) (tinyurl.com/4pdvjaft).

The @gdraqv.bsky.social "Approches Quantitatives du Vivant" is organizing its annual conference, "AQV Days 2026".

🗓️ From the 11th to 13th May
📍 At the @cnrs.fr centre of Aussois (Savoie)

👉 registration, and other practical information :
🔗 aqv-days-2026.sciencesconf.org/%60

#AQVDays2026

3/5 Mapping the Invisible: Using Flipper-TR + FLIM imaging, researchers visualized tension in live lung tissue.

They discovered a drop in membrane tension before cells differentiate into AT1 or AT2 alveolar cells.

Even cooler? It mapped "emergent zones" of low tension where differentiation starts!

First 24 hours of embryonic development in 9 different animal species: (From left to right) Zebrafish, Sea urchin, Black widow spider, Tardigrade, Sea squirt, Comb jelly, Parchment tube worm, Roundworm, Slipper snail. Credit to @tessamontague.bsky.social & Zuzka Vavrušová. #ZebrafishZunday #devbio 🧪

🚨 #postdoc to be hired in the Paluch Lab 🚨

If you know anyone experienced with and, more importantly, excited about nanoscale architecture of #actincortex and super-res & electron #microscopy do encourage them to apply👇

Amazing colleagues, can only recommend 😉

www.cam.ac.uk/jobs/researc...

Preprint Editors – Development's next step into the preprint landscape Summary: This Editorial announces a call for Preprint Editors in Development to help expand the journal's relationship with preprints by curating our ‘In preprints’ articles.

New from @dev-journal.bsky.social: we're launching a new initiative and hiring Preprint Editors to help navigate the growing world of preprints in developmental & stem cell biology

Join our community & shape the future of research

journals.biologists.com/dev/article/...

Stretching drives Membrane Homogenization of Phase-Separated Supported Lipid Bilayers www.biorxiv.org/content/10.64898/2026.02...

New preprint @biorxiv-devbio.bsky.social by Harshath Amal and colleagues from our lab @uni-muenster.de shows how a BMP #morphogen gradient is translated into graded junctional permeability by tuning adhesion and actomyosin contractility in #Drosophila
See tinyurl.com/yhbwd9xh
@sfb1348.bsky.social

Mapping life’s disparity and evolutionary constraints in a geometric complexity space Life’s diversity is limited to a small set of shapes due to fundamental physical and evolutionary constraints.

Avec Guillaume Dera, premier auteur de l'étude. www.science.org/doi/10.1126/...

Le vivant n’explore même pas 1 % des formes possibles Des bactéries aux arbres, des coraux aux oiseaux, la vie terrestre semble d’une diversité infinie. Pourtant, une nouvelle étude parue dans Science Advances montre que la vie terrestre n’explore qu’une...

Des bactéries aux arbres, des coraux aux oiseaux, la vie terrestre semble d’une diversité infinie. Pourtant, une nouvelle étude montre que le vivant n’explore qu’une infime fraction des formes théoriquement possibles.
🦌🐊🌴🐠🐌
(et oui, j'ai passé le Roi Lion à la fin, faut savoir se faire plaisir)