1/6 Can learning in physical systems help us understand how embryos shape themselves? Our PNAS paper with Andrea Liu & @manningresearch.bsky.social introduces a tunable-matter framework for morphogenesis, using convergent extension as a case study. www.pnas.org/doi/10.1073/...

Very happy to share our paper is now out in Nature Physics! We combine a four-cell assay with vertex-model theory to study T1 transitions in tissues Started during my postdoc at Syracuse with @manningresearch.bsky.social . Learned a lot from this amazing team! www.nature.com/articles/s41...

Excited to present this work w/ @shilabanerjee.bsky.social next week at APS Global Physics Summit 2026 on mechanical memory and learning in biological tissues. bioRxiv: www.biorxiv.org/content/10.6...

I try really hard to keep this account focused on professional updates. But I can’t stay silent. Whatever your politics, religion, or personal beliefs: Please be our voice. Please help amplify attention on what’s happening. Please don’t stay silent. #DigitalBlackoutIran #IranMassacre #Iran

Can biological tissues "learn"? Our new preprint shows that epithelial tissues exhibit emergent behaviors akin to unsupervised learning. Local tension remodeling allows cell networks to store long-range memory and program global elasticity properties. Read more here: www.biorxiv.org/content/10.6...

It’s back! The DBIO Focus Session on Collective Behaviors in Biology returns to #APSMarch #APSSummit26 🎉 Submit your abstract by Oct 23 and join us in Denver! go.aps.org/3I51s36 Invited Speakers: Jasmin Imran Alsous (Flatiron Institute) & Shiladitya Banerjee (Georgia Tech)

Why do vertex models work so well to predict tissue fluidity/rigidity, even though they are simple and possibly even wrong? A new paper in PRX Life @prxlife.bsky.social, spearheaded by @sadjadarzash.bsky.social and Ojan Damavandi, suggests universality may explain: journals.aps.org/prxlife/abst...

Universality in the Mechanical Behavior of Vertex Models for Biological Tissues

A systematic comparison of diverse cell packing models reveals shared mechanical rules that govern how tissues stiffen, yield, and reorganize---shedding light on the physical logic behind morphogenesi...

journals.aps.org

Excited to share our new paper in PRX Life @prxlife.bsky.social! We uncover universal viscoelastic behavior in different vertex models of biological tissues, explaining why so many models work so well. Enjoyed working with Ojan (co-first), Liz & Lisa on this! See tinyurl.com/y27fysux

Rigidity of epithelial tissues as a double optimization problem, Sadjad Arzash, Indrajit Tah, Andrea J. Liu, and M. Lisa Manning go.aps.org/3EN84RD #SoftMatter #Biophysics #TissueMechanics

Discover work of Andrea Liu, Hepburn Professor of Physics at the University of Pennsylvania, and see how the NITMB supports Professor Liu’s exploration of biological systems in a new NITMB spotlight! www.nitmb.org/post/many-mo...

Have you ever wanted to *see* receptor activity in embryos? If so, our new preprint is for you! In it, we showcase a new live-cell biosensor for visualizing receptor tyrosine kinase activity in living embryos – pYtags! www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1...

Cell Size & Growth Tuesday 7th January 17:00, with talks from Michael Polymenis (Texas A&M) and Xiaoyu Shi (UC Irvine). swafferlab.co.uk/size-and-gro...

Cell Size & Growth

Cell Size & Growth is a fortnightly online seminar series showcasing the latest research into cellular size, growth, scaling and biosynthesis.

swafferlab.co.uk

🎓 Join us for our Spring School in Quantitative Biology: "Cell Dynamics in Developmental Systems" ✨ Featuring renowned speakers and hands-on workshops! Learn more and register: www.edu.bio.ens.psl.eu/spip.php?art...

Looking forward to attending this workshop in Jan to discuss how learning theories/frameworks could be used to study biological systems such as epithelial tissues #epithelial #EpithelialMechanics #cellbiology

NSF-Simons NITMB@nitmb.bsky.social · 2y ago

Our next workshop, Biological Systems that Learn, is coming soon! We can’t wait to welcome you to the NITMB as we seek to discover new core principles and mathematical tools/approaches shared across physical learning systems, biological learning systems, and neural networks