Modelling Developmental Systems, Part 2: Fins to Limbs
Channel: Johannes Jaeger
Date: 2020-05-07

This is part 2 of 3 in a mini-series of lectures that aims to convey a basic understanding of the purpose and potential of computational and mathematical modelling in developmental biology, and to familiarise the viewer with the basic concepts required for such understanding. 

I have developed and taught this mini-series over the past few years as part of the Wellcome PhD Programme in Developmental Biology at the University of Cambridge. I thank Clare Baker and Steve Russell for their continued support. The opinions expressed in this lecture do not necessarily reflect theirs! 😉

Part 2 illustrates the use of modelling in pattern formation using the example of vertebrate limb development. It introduces Turing systems as models of pattern formation that rely on differential diffusion for symmetry-breaking. After a little excursion into the world of animal coat patterns, it presents a realistic, data-driven model of digit patterning in mice, which reconciles the apparently contradictory notions of French-Flag- and Turing-based patterning in the limb. Furthermore, this model was used to shed new light on the fin-to-limb transition through a comparative study of digit patterning in mice and distal fin development in sharks. It demonstrates that the developmental processes generating distal elements of fins and limbs are conserved, suggesting (against mainstream opinion) that the hands and feet of land-dwelling animals are an ancient structure, rather than an evolutionary novelty.

Consult the references in the talk for further reading.

Feedback always welcome!