Anisotropic shear stress patterns predict the orientation of convergent tissue movements in the embryonic heart.

ABSTRACT: Myocardial contractility and blood flow provide essential mechanical cues for the morphogenesis of the heart. In general, endothelial cells change their migratory behavior in response to shear stress patterns, according to flow directionality. Here, we assessed the impact of shear stress patterns and flow directionality on the behavior of endocardial cells, the specialized endothelial cells of the heart. At the early stages of zebrafish heart valve formation, we show that endocardial cells are converging to the valve-forming area and that this behavior depends upon mechanical forces. Quantitative live imaging and mathematical modeling allow us to correlate this tissue convergence with the underlying flow forces. We predict that tissue convergence is associated with the direction of the mea

SUBMITTER: Boselli F 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC5769631 | biostudies-literature | 2017 Dec

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature