Research

Research in the Manning group follows two interconnected thrusts: collective behavior in biological tissues and deformation in disordered solids. See below for details on each sub-topic.

Simulation of Kupffer's vesicle showing anterior (f_a) and posterior (f_p) drag forces on cells during organogenesis

Organogenesis during development

  • Dynamic forces generated by tissue drag
  • Interfering with myosin via an optically released drug

Personnel: Rajendra Singh Negi, Raj Kumar Manna, Jeff Amack Lab (SUNY Upstate), Heidi Hehnly Lab (SU)

Simulation of active rod-shaped particles packed together, with red indicating polarity or force direction

Predicting dissipation and flow in non-Hamiltonian active disordered solids

  • Systems with pressure gradients
  • Active rods that cannot be mapped to a Hamiltonian system

Personnel: Tyler Hain, Julia Giannini, Adil Ghaznavi, Edan Lerner (U. Amsterdam)

3D vertex model showing a placode (red, invaginating cell) forming within a stratified epithelial tissue

Placode formation and homeostasis in stratified epithelia

  • Placode formation
  • Homeostasis and delamination

Personnel: Elizabeth Lawson-Keister, Somiealo Azote, Sara Wickstrom Lab (Muenster), Carien Niessen Lab (Cologne)

Simulation of a sheared amorphous packing showing a localized shear band of non-affine displacement

Yielding in glassy and active matter

  • Is the yielding transition brittle in dense active matter?
  • Structural elasto-plastic models for yielding
  • Spatio-temporal dynamics of avalanches in particle-based and elasto-plastic models
  • Structural indicators as a function of packing fraction

Personnel: Adil Ghaznavi, Cam Dennis, David Richard

Network model of stellate mesenchymal cells showing sparse, star-shaped connectivity with large gaps between cells

Emergent mechanics in tissues composed of stellate mesenchymal cells

  • Developing new models for tissues with star-like cell shapes and large gaps between cells
  • A new, bioinspired type of active metamaterial: fluid under tension

Personnel: Alex Grigas, Ale Mongera (UCL)

Sphere showing the critical stress manifold in three-dimensional stress space, separating rigid (orange) and floppy (purple) regions

Characterizing and designing second-order rigid materials

  • Designing mechanical metamaterials by sculpting the critical manifold in fiber networks
  • Parameterizing the critical manifold of vertex models for biological tissues
  • Making real mechanical networks with torsional springs

Personnel: Tyler Hain, Kelly Aspinwall, Chris Santangelo (SU)

Vertex model tissue network with edge tensions colored by strength, showing localized high-tension pathways

Physical learning in biological tissues

  • Can we use physical learning to fluidize a tissue?
  • Comparing proposed mechanisms for germband extension in Drosophila using a physical learning framework
  • Cell differentiation patterning via surface receptors (Notch-Delta)

Personnel: Sadjad Arzash, Kelly Aspinwall, Andrea Liu (UPenn)