Research report 2005 - Max Planck Institute for Dynamics and Self-Organization
Pattern Formation in Biophysics
Authors
Luther, Stefan; Beta, Carsten; Bodenschatz, Eberhard
Departments
Hydrodynamik, Strukturbildung und Nanobiokomplexität (Prof. Dr. Eberhard Bodenschatz)
MPI für Dynamik und Selbstorganisation, Göttingen
Summary
The mechanisms of spatiotemporal pattern formation in biology and medicine is key to the understanding of living matter from cell to organs. The phenomenon of self-organization is observed in the chemotactic motion of cells forming complex behavior and structures. On an organ level, the nonlinear interaction of cardiac cells is evident in the transition from periodic heart rhythm to spatiotemporal chaos associated with sudden cardiac death. We describe our experimental and numerical approach to gain further understanding of these biophysical systems.