The Mysterious Mechanics of Morphogenesis

Tissue engineering—creating a “seed” of tissue that could grow into a functional, life-saving organ—sounds like magic. But it could become technology, thanks in part to the work led by Lance Davidson, William Kepler Whiteford Professor of Bioengineering in Swanson School of Engineering.

Davidson’s Mechanics of Morphogenesis Lab works at the interface of physics and biology to understand principles of morphogenesis—in this case, the development of the embryonic form—in the frog. The work not only lays the groundwork to better understand human cell and tissue development, it also has implications for furthering tissue engineering, preventing birth defects, and understanding the effect of tissue mechanics on cancer cell growth and proliferation. NIH granted Davidson a MERIT (Method to Extend Research in Time) Award of $2.2 million to carry out this work.

“There are a diverse set of chemical and physical pathways that regulate morphogenesis and that interact with the environment,” says Davidson. “We aim to understand the coupling between cell biological and physical mechanisms that drive cell shape changes, control cell behaviors, generate forces, and create tissue properties such as stiffness.”