Speakers
Description
Vertex models have emerged as a central computational and theoretical framework for understanding how mechanical interactions at the level of individual cells give rise to collective behaviours in developing and homeostatic tissues \cite{briñas2024,alt2017}. In these models, epithelial and other confluent tissues are represented as tilings of polygons or polyhedra whose vertices encode cell–cell interfaces, tensions, and forces, enabling mechanistic investigation of key biological processes such as force-mediated cell rearrangements, rigidity transitions, tissue fluidity, and morphogenetic shape changes \cite{bi2014}. Recent advances have extended classical 2D vertex models to three-dimensional geometries, incorporated mechanochemical feedback and active cellular processes, and developed statistical inference strategies linking model predictions with experimental data. Applications range from embryonic development and wound healing to cancer invasion and organoid dynamics, highlighting both the strengths and limitations of current formulations.
This minisymposium invites contributions on theoretical developments, computational innovations, and applications of vertex models to complex biological phenomena, with emphasis on mechanical principles, multiscale integration, and quantitative comparison with experimental systems. By stimulating dialogue across disciplines, we aim to chart future directions for vertex-based modelling in mathematical and theoretical biology.
Bibliography
@article{briñas2024,
author = {Briñas-Pascual, Natalia and Cornwall-Scoones, Jake and O’Hanlon, Daniel and Guerrero, P. and Perez-Carrasco, Ruben},
year = {2024},
month = {11},
pages = {586-603},
title = {No Country for Old Frameworks? Vertex Models and Their Ongoing Reinvention to Study Tissue Dynamics},
volume = {4},
journal = {Biophysica},
doi = {10.3390/biophysica4040039}
}
@article{bi2014,
author = {Bi, Dapeng and Lopez, Jorge and Schwarz, J. and Manning, M. Lisa},
year = {2014},
month = {09},
pages = {},
title = {A density-independent glass transition in biological tissues},
volume = {11},
journal = {Nature Physics},
doi = {10.1038/nphys3471}
}
@article{alt2017,
author = {Alt, Silvanus and Ganguly, Poulami and Salbreux, Guillaume},
year = {2017},
month = {03},
pages = {20150520},
title = {Vertex models: From cell mechanics to tissue morphogenesis},
volume = {372},
journal = {Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society B: Biological Sciences},
doi = {10.1098/rstb.2015.0520}
}
