Robust formation of morphogen gradients

We discuss the formation of graded morphogen profiles in a cell layer by nonlinear transport phenomena, important for patterning developing organisms. We focus on a process termed transcytosis, where morphogen transport results from the binding of ligands to receptors on the cell surface, incorporat...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Physical review letters 2005-01, Vol.94 (1), p.018103-018103, Article 018103
Main Authors: Bollenbach, T, Kruse, K, Pantazis, P, González-Gaitán, M, Jülicher, F
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Cell Communication - physiology
Cell Differentiation - physiology
Cell Physiological Phenomena
Computer Simulation
Diffusion
Models, Biological
Models, Chemical
Morphogenesis - physiology
Protein Transport - physiology
Transforming Growth Factors - chemistry
Transforming Growth Factors - metabolism
Transforming Growth Factors - secretion
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Summary:We discuss the formation of graded morphogen profiles in a cell layer by nonlinear transport phenomena, important for patterning developing organisms. We focus on a process termed transcytosis, where morphogen transport results from the binding of ligands to receptors on the cell surface, incorporation into the cell, and subsequent externalization. Starting from a microscopic model, we derive effective transport equations. We show that, in contrast to morphogen transport by extracellular diffusion, transcytosis leads to robust ligand profiles which are insensitive to the rate of ligand production.
ISSN:0031-9007
1079-7114
DOI:10.1103/PhysRevLett.94.018103