Multiscale biological systems converge toward universal topology
As has been known for almost 20 years, topological characteristics of polygonal proliferative epithelial cells of various animal and plant species are universal. Here, we address the question of whether this universality paradigm is applicable to the level of colonial organisms, i.e., at a significa...
Saved in:
| Main Authors: | , , , , , |
|---|---|
| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
| Published: |
American Physical Society
2025-08-01
|
| Series: | Physical Review Research |
| Online Access: | http://doi.org/10.1103/x72t-bsh4 |
| Tags: |
Add Tag
No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!
|
| _version_ | 1849404346286997504 |
|---|---|
| author | Daria S. Roshal Renaud Lebrun Kirill Fedorenko Ivan Golushko Sergei B. Rochal Stephen Baghdiguian |
| author_facet | Daria S. Roshal Renaud Lebrun Kirill Fedorenko Ivan Golushko Sergei B. Rochal Stephen Baghdiguian |
| author_sort | Daria S. Roshal |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | As has been known for almost 20 years, topological characteristics of polygonal proliferative epithelial cells of various animal and plant species are universal. Here, we address the question of whether this universality paradigm is applicable to the level of colonial organisms, i.e., at a significantly higher level of life organization than cell populations. By comparing the cellular structure of the epithelium with the arrangement of individual polyps in coral colonies, we discover common topological patterns at distinct levels of life structuring. We hypothesize that the mechanism behind this universality is a repulsion between structural units limited by a certain critical distance. By minimizing the corresponding repulsive energy, we produce packings, which are similar to the epithelial and colonial systems in the distribution of structural units by both the number of their neighbors and their area. The surprising analogies between the systems together with the developed theoretical approach could provide an efficient tool for further studies on morphogenesis, development, and evolution of living systems. |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj-art-8f88f18081c24dc6bd8f7ef7435bb076 |
| institution | Kabale University |
| issn | 2643-1564 |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2025-08-01 |
| publisher | American Physical Society |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Physical Review Research |
| spelling | doaj-art-8f88f18081c24dc6bd8f7ef7435bb0762025-08-20T03:37:02ZengAmerican Physical SocietyPhysical Review Research2643-15642025-08-017303315110.1103/x72t-bsh4Multiscale biological systems converge toward universal topologyDaria S. RoshalRenaud LebrunKirill FedorenkoIvan GolushkoSergei B. RochalStephen BaghdiguianAs has been known for almost 20 years, topological characteristics of polygonal proliferative epithelial cells of various animal and plant species are universal. Here, we address the question of whether this universality paradigm is applicable to the level of colonial organisms, i.e., at a significantly higher level of life organization than cell populations. By comparing the cellular structure of the epithelium with the arrangement of individual polyps in coral colonies, we discover common topological patterns at distinct levels of life structuring. We hypothesize that the mechanism behind this universality is a repulsion between structural units limited by a certain critical distance. By minimizing the corresponding repulsive energy, we produce packings, which are similar to the epithelial and colonial systems in the distribution of structural units by both the number of their neighbors and their area. The surprising analogies between the systems together with the developed theoretical approach could provide an efficient tool for further studies on morphogenesis, development, and evolution of living systems.http://doi.org/10.1103/x72t-bsh4 |
| spellingShingle | Daria S. Roshal Renaud Lebrun Kirill Fedorenko Ivan Golushko Sergei B. Rochal Stephen Baghdiguian Multiscale biological systems converge toward universal topology Physical Review Research |
| title | Multiscale biological systems converge toward universal topology |
| title_full | Multiscale biological systems converge toward universal topology |
| title_fullStr | Multiscale biological systems converge toward universal topology |
| title_full_unstemmed | Multiscale biological systems converge toward universal topology |
| title_short | Multiscale biological systems converge toward universal topology |
| title_sort | multiscale biological systems converge toward universal topology |
| url | http://doi.org/10.1103/x72t-bsh4 |
| work_keys_str_mv | AT dariasroshal multiscalebiologicalsystemsconvergetowarduniversaltopology AT renaudlebrun multiscalebiologicalsystemsconvergetowarduniversaltopology AT kirillfedorenko multiscalebiologicalsystemsconvergetowarduniversaltopology AT ivangolushko multiscalebiologicalsystemsconvergetowarduniversaltopology AT sergeibrochal multiscalebiologicalsystemsconvergetowarduniversaltopology AT stephenbaghdiguian multiscalebiologicalsystemsconvergetowarduniversaltopology |