"How the gut got its spots: a fluid-like mesenchyme shapes the intestine"

Abstract: "Tissue folds comprise structural motifs critical to organ function. In the intestine, tissue folding generates millions of finger-like protrusions called villi that are essential for nutrient absorption, yet how these structures form in mammals has remained a mystery. In my seminar, I’ll describe an active mechanical mechanism that simultaneously patterns and folds the intestinal epithelium to initiate villus formation. At the cellular level, subepithelial mesenchyme generates myosin II-dependent forces sufficient to produce patterned curvature in neighboring tissue interfaces. This symmetry-breaking process requires dynamic cell and extracellular matrix interactions that are enabled by matrix metalloproteinase-mediated tissue fluidization. By bridging theory with experiments, we revealed that these cellular features manifest at the tissue level as differences in interfacial tensions that promote mesenchymal aggregation and interface bending through a process analogous to the dewetting of a thin liquid film into droplets"