title: Tissue Dynamics: Lessons Learned From Sutural Morphogenesis and Cancer Growth.
abstract: Why are cranial sutures the way they are? How do cancers grow? Merging physics and mathematics with biology, we develop equations describing these complex adaptive systems, to which all biological entities belong, calling them laws of tissue dynamics:Where t is time, E is energy, M is body mass, X is the biological characteristic of interest, C is a constant, a is an exponent.(1) is based on conservation of matter: for any given tissue, materials in must equal to materials out +/- assimilated or degraded. (2) is based on energy conservation. All living systems require energy, without which life becomes impossible. Equation (2) is a power spectrum.
  
  
  OBJECTIVE
  This study aimed to introduce the laws of tissue dynamics and to illustrate them using observations from craniofacial and cancer growth.
  
  
  METHODS
  We use cranial sutures as a model system to test Equation (1), we also measure the in vitro growth rate of normal murine liver and spleen cells, comparing them to B16F10 melanoma cells. We show the increase in compound growth rate and energetic requirement of malignant versus normal cells as partial proof of Equation (2).
  
  
  RESULTS
  The constant width and wavy form of cranial sutures are the inevitable results of repeated iteration from coupling of growth and stress. The compound growth rate of B10F16 melanoma cells exceeds that of normal cells by 1.0 to 1.5%, whereas their glucose uptake is equal to 3.6 billion glucose molecules/cell per minute.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Living things are complex adaptive systems, thus a different way of thinking and investigating, going beyond the current reductive approach, is required.
authors.affiliation: From the *Section of Plastic Surgery, Medical College of Georgia, Georgia Regents University, Augusta, GA; †Plastic Surgery Hospital, Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences & Peking Union Medical College, Peking, China; ‡Division of Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery, Department of Surgery, Taipei Veterans General Hospital, Taipei, Taiwan; §Department of Surgery, University of South Carolina, Columbia, SC; ∥Medical College of Georgia, Georgia Regents University, Augusta, GA; ¶Savannah River National Laboratory, Aiken, SC; and #Department of Oral Biology, College of Dental Medicine, Georgia Regents University, Augusta, GA.
authors.forename: Jack C
authors.initials: JC
authors.lastname: Yu
authors.forename: Lei
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Cai
authors.forename: Tien-Hsiang
authors.initials: TH
authors.lastname: Wang
authors.forename: Henrik O
authors.initials: HO
authors.lastname: Berdel
authors.forename: Jung-Hoon
authors.initials: JH
authors.lastname: Lee
authors.forename: Poh-Sang
authors.initials: PS
authors.lastname: Lam
authors.forename: John
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Hershman
authors.forename: Babak
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Baban
mesh_terms: D000222:Adaptation, Physiological; D000818:Animals; D045744:Cell Line, Tumor; D003393:Cranial Sutures / Q000254:growth & development*; D004734:Energy Metabolism; D006706:Homeostasis; D006801:Humans; D008545:Melanoma / Q000503:physiopathology*; D051379:Mice; D008954:Models, Biological; D009024:Morphogenesis / Q000502:physiology*