Study of Tissue Biomechanics During Cranial Neural Tube Closure by Brillouin Scattering (CAT#: STEM-ST-0142-YJL)

Introduction

Extensive research efforts have uncovered how mechanical forces regulate cell functions through the process of mechanotransduction, a mechanism by which cells sense and convert mechanical stimuli to biochemical signals that elicit a range of specific cellular responses. Mechanical cues have also been found to play crucial roles during developmental processes, where the morphological evolution involving cell alignment, cell folding and tissue reshaping are contributed by both force and mechanical properties of local tissue. For example, the development of the central nervous system of vertebrate animals starts from neurulation, a folding process in which a flat neural plate is transformed into a closed neural tube, and the failure of this process may result in severe birth defect such as spina bifida. The process of neural tube closure (NTC) is regulated by biomechanics through the interaction of generated internal forces and the stiffness of the embryonic tissue. Thus, understanding how the tissue deforms and reshapes under applied loads during NTC requires a detailed characterization of tissue biomechanics.