What it is
In branched pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma organoids, the authors show that the shift from a disordered mesenchymal state to an ordered columnar epithelium is accompanied by the formation of multicellular rosettes. Fluctuating acto-myosin contractions on the emerging apical side of high-density branches set up a tug-of-war that spaces the rosettes regularly, with the distance between adjacent rosettes depending on branch diameter, a relationship they reproduce with a minimal model based on apical constriction. A lumen then forms as an inner cell mass undergoes apoptosis, leaving an epithelial layer lining the cavity.
Why it matters
Mesenchymal-to-epithelial transitions are essential for building functional organ tissue, yet how a disordered cell mass self-organizes into a lumen-bearing epithelium is not well understood. By tying rosette spacing to geometric confinement of nuclei together with acto-myosin contraction, and validating it with a minimal physical model, the work argues that mechanical processes, not biochemical signaling alone, guide self-organized epithelial assembly.
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Filed underCancer Cells and Metastasis, Cellular Mechanics and Interactions, Cell Adhesion Molecules Research