Necking of epithelial tissues with cellular topological transition

Abstract

As the cover of embryos and adult organisms, epithelial tissues are subjected to substantial mechanical forces in tissue morphogenesis. However, the finite deformation behaviors of epithelial tissues remain largely unexplored. This study combines discrete vertex simulations with a multiscale constitutive model to investigate the necking behavior of epithelial tissues. In the multiscale model, the shape changes and topological transitions of single cells are mapped to the elastic and inelastic tissue deformations via a mean-field formulation. Our results show that the necking bifurcation of a stretched tissue arises from cellular topological transitions. The bifurcation condition and the steady state of necking propagation are predicted from the constitutive model and validated by vertex simulations. Furthermore, we find that topological defects in disordered tissues facilitate necking bifurcation but impede its propagation. These defects also induce the necked region to collapse into a thin thread, as observed in real tissues. Together, our work provides valuable insights into the deformation behaviors of epithelial tissues.