Despite continual renewal and damages, a multicellular organism is able to maintain its
complex morphology. How is this stability compatible with the complexity and diversity
of living forms?
Inspired by the progressive role of apical-
basal and planar cell polarity in development, we propose that stability, complexity,
and diversity are emergent properties in populations of polarized cells.
We support our hypothesis by a theoretical approach, developed to deal with both
types of polar cell adhesions. When applied to specific developmental stages -
gastrulation and the origins of folds and tubes – our model suggests that
these can be directed by an interplay between the types of polar adhesion.
An interplay that are guided by restricted directions of cell
polarities, and the rate of cell proliferation. Finally we discuss how
the two polarities allow us to model formation of networks of blood vessel.
