The interplay of stiffness and force anisotropies drives embryo elongation.
The morphogenesis of tissues, like the deformation of an object, results from the interplay between their material properties and the mechanical forces exerted on them. The importance of mechanical forces in influencing cell behaviour is widely recognized, whereas the importance of tissue material properties, in particular stiffness, has received much less attention. UsingCaenorhabditis elegansas a model, we examine how both aspects contribute to embryonic elongation. Measuring the opening shape of the epidermal actin cortex after laser nano-ablation, we assess the spatiotemporal changes of actomyosin-dependent force and stiffness along the antero-posterior and dorso-ventral axis. Experimental data and analytical modelling show that myosin-II-dependent force anisotropy within the lateral epidermis, and stiffness anisotropy within the fiber-reinforced dorso-ventral epidermis are critical in driving embryonic elongation. Together, our results establish a quantitative link between cortical tension, material properties and morphogenesis of an entire embryo.
Laboratoire de Biologie du Développement - Institut de Biologie Paris Seine (LBD - IBPS), Sorbonne Universités, UPMC Univ Paris 06, CNRS, Paris, France.|Development and Stem Cells Program, IGBMC, CNRS (UMR7104), INSERM (U964), Université de Strasbourg, Illkirch, France.
Thanh Thi Kim
0000-0001-6594-2881
TT
Vuong-Brender
Laboratoire de Physique Statistique, Ecole Normale Supérieure, UPMC Université Pierre et Marie Curie, Université Paris Diderot, CNRS, Paris, France.|Institut Universitaire de Cancérologie, Faculté de Médecine, Université Pierre et Marie Curie-Paris, Paris, France.
Martine
0000-0001-9132-2053
M
Ben Amar
Development and Stem Cells Program, IGBMC, CNRS (UMR7104), INSERM (U964), Université de Strasbourg, Illkirch, France.
Julien
0000-0001-7412-4645
J
Pontabry
Laboratoire de Biologie du Développement - Institut de Biologie Paris Seine (LBD - IBPS), Sorbonne Universités, UPMC Univ Paris 06, CNRS, Paris, France.|Development and Stem Cells Program, IGBMC, CNRS (UMR7104), INSERM (U964), Université de Strasbourg, Illkirch, France.
Michel
0000-0001-7995-5843
M
Labouesse
D000818:Animals; D016880:Anisotropy; D017173:Caenorhabditis elegans / Q000033:anatomy & histology* / Q000196:embryology*; D047108:Embryonic Development; D009024:Morphogenesis
C. elegans; actomyosin; cell biology; developmental biology; embryonic elongation; fiber-reinforced material; force anisotropy; laser nano-ablation; stem cells; stiffness anisotropy