Cell collectives build form to determine function of organ systems

Cell collectives build form to determine function of organ systems Jacqueline Tabler emphasises the challenges of connecting molecular changes to tissue structure and highlights the potential of multifractal frameworks to quantify complex biological patterns, providing a way to analyse irregularities in tissue organisation. The mantra ‘form is function’ captures the link between how cells and tissues are organised across scales and how organs work. (1,2) Spatial and temporal patterns of interactions between molecules, cells, and extracellular matrix during development shape organ form, constrain function, and ultimately influence health. Medicine and biomedical research, therefore, use changes in form to classify disease, particularly disorders arising from altered embryonic development. (3) Although morphological patterns are routinely used as readouts, the mechanisms that generate and regulate those patterns remain difficult to define.