Control of morphology and topology in a lattice model of branching morphogenesis

Abstract

We present a lattice model for morphogen-controlled branching morphogenesis which combines ideas and concepts from non-equilibrium physics and developmental biology. In this model, the stochastic occupation dynamics of cells is coupled with signaling molecules (morphogens) produced by the cells. We investigate growth patterns governed by morphogen concentration gradients, spanning regimes ranging from the diffusion-limited aggregation limit to the stochastic surface growth (Eden model) limit. Moreover, we introduce control over topology by a local operator and study growth, degrowth, and steady-state dynamics of branched patterns. The topology-preserving steady-state clusters exhibit a power-law scaling of radius of gyration with cluster size, yielding the exponents $0.68\pm0.01$ in square lattice and $0.67\pm 0.01$ in hexagonal lattice.