Shape-independent fluidity in epithelial cell monolayers.

Reducing cell-cell adhesion increases epithelial monolayer fluidity without altering cell shape, density, or tension, challenging existing shape-based models.

• Why it matters: Understanding tissue fluidity is crucial for insights into development, healing, and cancer spread, but current models overlook the complex role of adhesion beyond shape regulation.
• What they did: The study manipulated adhesion levels in epithelial monolayers and observed fluidity changes, extending vertex models to include both adhesion energy and viscous friction effects.
• The result: The findings reveal that adhesion influences fluidity through both thermodynamic and kinetic mechanisms, enabling more accurate predictions of tissue behavior and informing biological and medical research.