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arXiv · 2201.06478

Contact-mediated signaling enables disorder-driven transitions in cellular assemblies

Chandrashekar Kuyyamudi·Shakti N. Menon·Sitabhra Sinha
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Abstract

We show that when cells communicate by contact-mediated interactions, heterogeneity in cell shapes and sizes leads to qualitatively distinct collective behavior in the tissue. For inter-cellular coupling that implements lateral inhibition, such disorder-driven transitions can substantially alter the asymptotic pattern of differentiated cells by modulating their fate choice through changes in the neighborhood geometry. In addition, when contact-induced signals influence inherent cellular oscillations, disorder leads to the emergence of functionally relevant partially-ordered dynamical states.

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Chandrashekar Kuyyamudi, Shakti N. Menon, Sitabhra Sinha. 2022-01-17. Contact-mediated signaling enables disorder-driven transitions in cellular assemblies. https://doi.org/10.1103/physreve.106.l022401

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