Simulation of tissue folding with the Cellular Potts Model

Villi formation in the intestine is an example of tissue folding and a poorly understood mechanism. The Cellular Potts Model is a computational model to simulate cellular structures. A mathematical model for epithelial folding using the Cellular Potts Model was implemented to analyze the behaviour of a three layered tissue for different cell properties. The centers of mass and the forces on the cells were used to analyse the simulation results. The forces on the cells are higher during simulations than at the end, and higher growth ratios result in larger forces. Various relations are found between homotypic bond energies, resistance to compression or growth increments of the cells and the amplitude, frequency or size of the tissue. Resistance of the medium and the behaviour of the boundary cells is responsible for epithelial folding and only a small part of the parameter space yields tissues that have a wavelike shape and unbroken cell layers.

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Simulation of tissue folding with the Cellular Potts Model