Spatiotemporal patterning of bioenergetics predicts the macroscopic folding of tissue monolayers

Synopsis

In developing organs, the emergence of macroscopic three-dimensional architecture from two-dimensional monolayers results from patterns of active forces fueled by chemical energy. At the tissue level, a density increase of mitochondrial ATP precedes an increase in monolayer curvature. This phenomenon is conserved across a diverse range of developing organs from chicken lungs to mouse eyes. At the subcellular level, mitochondria are asymmetrically distributed within a cell to provide ATP near force-generating cytoskeletal machinery.  Bounds on the chemical and mechanical energies involved in this process raise future questions about efficiency and optimization in biology. These findings establish a spatial dimension of bioenergetics.