L. Mahadevan

How spiders use dragline silk to control abseiling and jumping

This paper develops a dynamical model to show how spiders use constant-strain dragline silk to control abseiling and jumping, ensuring stable movement and landing.

Modeling one-shot interceptions in fruit-catching fish

This paper models one-shot interception behavior in fruit-catching fish using stochastic optimal control and reinforcement learning, showing how noise and energy conservation affect optimal strategies.

Parametric Engineering of Atrioventricular Living Valve Transplants

This study develops a patient-optimized bi-leaflet valve transplant using donor tissue and artificial chordae, demonstrating favorable hemodynamics in porcine models.

Reversible superdeformability of hiPSC epithelial cortinoids

This study shows that iPSC-derived epithelial cortinoids use reversible cytoskeletal instabilities to withstand large deformations during morphogenesis.

Substrate mediated mechanical forces enable optimal kinetic proofreading by T-cell receptors

This study shows how mechanical forces and substrate properties enhance T-cell receptor proofreading by delaying decision-making and improving ligand discrimination.

Postural control in an upright snake

The paper quantifies upright posturing in snakes and presents a theoretical framework for postural stability using muscle force models and control strategies.

Biophysical basis for brain folding and misfolding patterns in ferrets and humans

The paper uses physical gel models and simulations to study brain folding in ferrets and links findings to human cortical malformations caused by genetic defects.

Morphogenesis and morphometry of brain folding patterns across species

This study uses physical experiments, computational models, and morphometric analysis to show that differential growth explains cortical folding across species.

Convergent flow-mediated mesenchymal force drives embryonic foregut constriction and splitting

This study identifies a biomechanical mechanism involving mesenchymal forces and SHH signaling that drives epithelial tube splitting during tracheal-esophageal separation in embryos.

Locally stimulating cell migration in living tissues drives long range collective motion through cell-cell adhesion leading to accelerated migration, healing, and growth

The paper demonstrates that local stimulation of cell migration in tissues can drive collective motion through cell-cell adhesion, accelerating healing and growth by 5-fold.

Distributed neural computation and the evolution of the first brains

This study investigates the neural architecture of the acoel worm Hofstenia miamia, finding a diffuse brain with computationally pluripotent regions that support robust behavior.

Courtship vocalizations in male ducks: spectral composition and resonance of the syringeal bulla

This study investigates the role of the male duck syringeal bulla in courtship vocalizations by analyzing resonance frequencies and comparing them to vocalization spectra.

Speed-accuracy trade-offs in Roulette betting

This study examines how individuals balance speed and accuracy in Roulette betting, finding that participants improve and approach optimal performance through learning.

Activity-driven extracellular volume expansion drives vertebrate axis elongation

The paper shows that active tissue expansion, driven by FGF signaling and HA production, propels vertebrate body elongation without relying on cell proliferation.

Morphodynamics of tip growing cells

The paper develops a theoretical framework to model the dynamics of tip-growing cells by coupling vesicle exocytosis to wall mechanics.

Hox genes modulate physical forces to differentially shape small and large intestinal epithelia

This study shows Hoxd13 regulates hindgut morphogenesis through the TGFβ pathway by altering mesenchymal biomechanics.

A mechanochemical model recapitulates distinct vertebrate gastrulation modes

This paper develops a mechanochemical model that explains vertebrate gastrulation morphologies by coupling actomyosin activity to tissue flow, showing how different patterns emerge from a uniform state.

Direct Force Measurement and Loading on Developing Tissues in Intact Avian Embryos

This paper introduces TiFM, a technique for measuring and applying forces to small tissues in early chicken embryos, showing it can capture stress dynamics and alter morphogenetic processes.

Ethology of morphogenesis reveals the design principles of cnidarian size and shape development

The paper shows how muscular hydraulic behavior in Nematostella vectensis drives larva-polyp morphogenesis through antagonistic muscle pressures.

Reconstruction of distinct vertebrate gastrulation modes via modulation of key cell behaviours in the chick embryo

The paper manipulates cell behaviours in chick embryos to generate different gastrulation modes, suggesting evolution of these processes is shaped by mesendoderm territory shape and signalling pathways.

Mechanical Coupling Coordinates the Co-elongation of Axial and Paraxial Tissues in Avian Embryos

The paper shows that mechanical interactions coordinate the elongation of axial and paraxial tissues in avian embryos through a feedback loop involving cell motility and compression.

Dynamic Morphoskeletons in Development

The paper identifies Dynamic Morphoskeletons (DM) from cell velocity data to analyze tissue organization during development, revealing spatial attractors and repellers in chicken and fly embryos.

Size control of the inner ear via hydraulic feedback

The paper investigates how zebrafish inner ear size is controlled through hydraulic feedback mechanisms involving fluid pressure and transport.

Geometric probability, psychophysics and invariance

The paper investigates how humans perceive randomness in geometric shapes using psychophysical experiments and finds that symmetry influences perceived randomness.

Spatiotemporal Integration in Plant Tropisms

This study develops a mathematical model to explain how plant shoots integrate temporal history of light and gravity stimuli to guide growth.

Hydraulic control of embryo size, tissue shape and cell fate

This study investigates how lumenal pressure and tissue mechanics regulate embryonic size and cell fate during mouse blastocyst development.

Fluid mediated self-organization of ventilation in honeybee nests

This study shows how honeybees self-organize ventilation by forming fanning groups in response to temperature changes, using a mathematical model to predict their behavior.

Motility-gradient induced elongation of the vertebrate embryo

The paper quantifies cell motility gradients in the chicken embryo's Tail Bud and shows that mechano-chemical models explain body elongation.