@article{21761,
  abstract     = {Neural tube closure is a critical morphogenetic process in vertebrate development, and failure to close cranial regions such as the hindbrain neuropore (HNP) leads to severe congenital malformations. While mechanical forces such as actomyosin purse-string contraction and directional cell crawling have been implicated in driving HNP closure, how these forces organize local cell shape and motion to produce large-scale tissue remodeling remains poorly understood. Using live and fixed imaging of mouse embryos combined with cell-based biophysical modeling, we show that these force-generating mechanisms are insufficient to explain the reproducible patterns of cell elongation and nematic alignment observed at the HNP border. Instead, we show that local anisotropic stress and cytoskeletal organization are required to generate these patterns and promote midline cell motion. Our model captures key features of cell shape dynamics and emergent nematic order, which we confirm experimentally, including the alignment of actin fibers with cell shape and enhanced midline cell speed. Comparative analysis with chick embryos, which lack supracellular purse strings, supports a conserved link between tension generation and cellular patterning. These findings establish a physical framework connecting force generation, cell shape anisotropy, and tissue morphodynamics during epithelial gap closure.},
  author       = {Perez Verdugo, Fernanda L and Maniou, Eirini and Galea, Gabriel L. and Banerjee, Shiladitya},
  issn         = {1879-0445},
  journal      = {Current Biology},
  number       = {8},
  pages        = {1903--1917.e5},
  publisher    = {Elsevier},
  title        = {{Mechanosensitive feedback organizes cell shape and motion during hindbrain neuropore morphogenesis}},
  doi          = {10.1016/j.cub.2026.02.068},
  volume       = {36},
  year         = {2026},
}

@article{21256,
  abstract     = {Collagen IV is one of the main components of the basement membrane, a layer of material that lines the majority of tissues in multicellular organisms. Collagen IV molecules assemble into networks, providing stiffness and elasticity to tissues and informing cell and organ shape, especially during development. In this work, we develop two coarse-grained models for collagen IV molecules that retain biochemical bond specificity and coarse grain at different length scales. Through molecular-dynamics simulations, we test the assembly and mechanics of the resulting networks and measure their response to strain in terms of stress, microscopic alignment, and bond dynamics. Within the basement membrane, collagen IV networks rearrange by molecule turnover, which affects tissue organization and can be linked with enzyme activity. Here we explore network rearrangements via bond remodeling, the process of breaking and remaking of bonds between network molecules. We then investigate the effects of active (enzymatic) bond remodeling. We find that this nonequilibrium remodeling allows a network to keep its integrity under strain, while relaxing fully over a variety of timescales, a dynamic response that is unavailable to networks undergoing equilibrium remodeling.},
  author       = {Meadowcroft, Billie and Sorichetti, Valerio and Ratajczyk, Eryk and Perez Verdugo, Fernanda L and Khalilgharibi, Nargess and Mao, Yanlan and Palaia, Ivan and Šarić, Anđela},
  issn         = {2835-8279},
  journal      = {PRX Life},
  publisher    = {American Physical Society},
  title        = {{Nonequilibrium remodeling of collagen IV networks in Silico}},
  doi          = {10.1103/gdd5-rnh7},
  volume       = {3},
  year         = {2025},
}