Cytokinetic actomyosin ring disassembly occurs through a novel mechanism in which the increased ring curvature, generated through contraction, itself promotes the disassembly process.

The actomyosin cytoskeleton generates active chiral torques that lead to left-right asymmetry in C. elegans embryos.

Asymmetric tension increase along the cell equator promotes self-organization of actomyosin into a partially aligned network during cytokinetic cleavage furrow ingression of vertebrate cells.

Novel mechanisms for cellular centering and symmetry breaking involving persistent contractile actomyosin flows and their hydrodynamic interactions with the fluid cytosol are presented and studied using a minimal, reconstituted system.

Combining quantitative biological experiment and physical description of actomyosin cortex reveals a contractile instability in the cortex of C. elegans embryo, and its biochemical control in order to robustly drive morphogenetic events.

Contractility wins over the polarity pathway in a tug-of-war to position a cytokinesis-like actomyosin ring at the equator of notochord cells.

Developmentally controlled chiral counter-rotating actomyosin flows drive cell-lineage spindle skews and cell rearrangements during cytokinesis in early nematode development.

Boundary cell identity and sharpening of borders are coupled in hindbrain development since both are regulated by mechanical tension.

Distinct molecular functions contribute to the same material property at larger scales leading to degenerate functionality.

Emergence of hematopoietic stem cells from an aortic component is a unique phenomenon of cell extrusion, with no equivalent in cell biology, and which is adapted to environmental constraints exerted by endothelial cells and hemodynamics forces.