Cell and tissue shape changes are the fundamental elements of morphogenesis that drive normal development of embryos into fully functional organisms. This requires a variety of cellular processes including establishment and maintenance of polarity, tissue growth and apoptosis, and cell differentiation, rearrangement, and migration. It is widely appreciated that the cytoskeletal networks play an important role in regulating many of these processes and, in particular, that pulsed actomyosin contractions are a core cellular mechanism driving cell shape changes and cell rearrangement. In this review, we discuss the role of pulsed actomyosin contractions during developmental morphogenesis, advances in our understanding of the mechanisms regulating actomyosin pulsing, and novel techniques to probe the role of pulsed actomyosin processes in in vivo model systems.
- Education
- Research
- Research Home
- Research Departments
- Research Offices
- Research Centers
- Cancer Center
- Cardiovascular Research Center
- Carter Immunology Center
- Center for Behavioral Health & Technology
- Center for Brain Immunology & Glia
- Center for Diabetes Technology
- Center for Immunity, Inflammation & Regenerative Medicine
- Center for Membrane & Cell Physiology
- Center for Research in Reproduction
- Myles H. Thaler Center for AIDS & Human Retrovirus Research
- Child Health Research Center (Pediatrics)
- Division of Perceptual Studies
- Research News: The Making of Medicine
- Research Core Facilities
- Other Research Programs
- Clinical
- Clinical Home
- Anesthesiology
- Dermatology
- Emergency Medicine
- Family Medicine
- Medicine
- Neurology
- Neurosurgery
- Obstetrics & Gynecology
- Ophthalmology
- Orthopaedic Surgery
- Otolaryngology
- Pathology
- Pediatrics
- Physical Medicine & Rehabilitation
- Plastic Surgery, Maxillofacial, & Oral Health
- Psychiatry & Neurobehavioral Sciences
- Radiation Oncology
- Radiology & Medical Imaging
- Surgery
- Urology
- UVA Health: Patient Care
- Diversity
- Faculty
- News
- About