Biological and Soft Mechanics Lab (BSML)

Our laboratory deciphers the “mechanical code” governing tissue morphology and cell fate through mechano-chemo-biological coupling. Across scales, from cells to tissues and from development to disease, we have identified “cell cluster mechanical synergy”, revealed how tension and hydraulic pressure coordinate intestinal organoid morphogenesis and homeostasis, and developed a framework for tumor mechanical adaptation and vascular instability.

Currently, we focus on the dynamics of active cell clusters, moving the field from qualitative description toward quantitative prediction. Our two major research directions are:

  1. Active cell clusters coupled with deformable matrices. We investigate matrix-mediated self-assembly, tissue morphogenesis, and cancer invasion, with the goal of advancing from quantitative prediction to precise regulation.

  2. Growth and migration of active cell and bacterial clusters. We examine how the physical and geometric properties of the mechanical environment regulate collective behavior and mechano-biological coupling.

Morphogenesis of biological tissues

  • Mechanochemical coupling
  • Stress-modulated growth and remodeling
  • Nematic order and topological defects
Mechanics example 1
Mechano-chemical bistability for crypt morphogenesis

Pattern formation of soft materials

  • Elastic instability
  • Phase transition
  • Multi-physical coupling mechanisms
Morphogenesis example 1
‘Snap-through’ instabilities in a simple elastic system