Flow Physics Guides Morphology of Ciliated Organs.

ABSTRACT: Organs that pump luminal fluids by the coordinated beat of motile cilia are integral to animal physiology. Such organs include the human airways, brain ventricles and reproductive tracts. Although cilia organization and duct morphology vary drastically in the animal kingdom, ducts are typically classified as carpet or flame designs. The reason behind the appearance of these two different designs and how they relate to fluid pumping remain unclear. Here, we demonstrate that two structural parameters - lumen diameter and cilia-to-lumen ratio - organize the observed duct diversity into a continuous spectrum that connects carpets to flames across all animal phyla. Using a unified fluid model, we connect carpet and flame designs to flow rate and pressure generation. We propose that convergence

SUBMITTER: Ling F 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC11932703 | biostudies-literature | 2024 Oct

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature