Continuum models of collective cell migration

TL;DR

This paper reviews how continuum models rooted in soft matter physics help understand the collective migration of cells in development, wound healing, and cancer, emphasizing the interplay of mechanical forces and biochemical regulation.

Contribution

It synthesizes recent advances in modeling collective cell migration as continuous active media, highlighting the predictive power of these models in biological processes.

Findings

Models capture collective cell dynamics as viscous fluid-like behavior.

Mechanical forces and biochemistry feedback drive tissue morphogenesis.

Continuum models predict tissue responses during development and repair.

Abstract

Collective cell migration plays a central role in tissue development, morphogenesis, wound repair and cancer progression. With the growing realization that physical forces mediate cell motility in development and physiology, a key biological question is how cells integrate molecular activities for force generation on multicellular scales. In this review we discuss recent advances in modeling collective cell migration using quantitative tools and approaches rooted in soft matter physics. We focus on theoretical models of cell aggregates as continuous active media, where the feedback between mechanical forces and regulatory biochemistry gives rise to rich collective dynamical behavior. This class of models provides a powerful predictive framework for the physiological dynamics that underlies many developmental processes, where cells need to collectively migrate like a viscous fluid to reach a target region, and then stiffen to support mechanical stresses and maintain tissue cohesion.