Mathematical modeling of collective cell movement

2016 Fiscal Year Final Research Report

• Project/Area Number: 26840085
• Research Category: Grant-in-Aid for Young Scientists (B)
• Allocation Type: Multi-year Fund
• Research Field: Developmental biology
• Research Institution: Kanazawa University (2015-2016); The Institute of Physical and Chemical Research (2014)
• Principal Investigator: Uriu Koichiro 金沢大学, 自然システム学系, 助教 (90726241)
• Project Period (FY): 2014-04-01 – 2017-03-31
• Keywords: 細胞移動 / 数理モデル / 画像解析 / 遺伝子発現リズム / 同期

Outline of Final Research Achievements

We studied collective cell movement in development using mathematical modeling and embryonic imaging data. We developed a novel nuclear segmentation algorithm for cell tracking and a method to validate the accuracy of segmentation algorithms. Using the approach, we quantified cell movement in the zebrafish presomitic mesoderm and constructed a physical model that reproduced observed cell movement patterns. Furthermore, by using mathematical models, we revealed that collective cell movement in the tissue could enhance synchronization of gene expression rhythms across a cell population, suggesting a biological relevance of collective cell movement in development.

Free Research Field

発生生物学