Biology

Dr.Amitabha Nandi
Indian Institute of Technology Bombay

In this talk, I will discuss two different examples that involve collective cellular flows during morphogenesis. In the first case we study the wing of a fruit-fly at the pupal stage, which undergoes dramatic shape change and in this dynamic process, the final shape of the wing is established. In the second case we look at the zebrafish tailbud, which is the posterior leading edge of the growing embryo. Study of the three-dimensional cellular flows in the tailbud indicates a change in tissue fluidity due to a reduction in the net directed movement. We try to understand the physical mechanisms involved during these processes by using a combination of experiment and theory.