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Biophysics

Cells guided on their journey

The formation of complex organs, tissue repair and metastasis all require a coordinated regulation of the shape and movement of groups of cells. The mechanical means of communication between cells is crucial to understanding collective cell motions — so how can cells transmit physical forces within cell sheets?

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Figure 1: Force distributions during cell migration.

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Ladoux, B. Cells guided on their journey. Nature Phys 5, 377–378 (2009). https://doi.org/10.1038/nphys1281

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