New publication: Three-dimensional mechanical cooperativity optimises epithelial wound healing

A wound in an epithelial sheet is not just a hole that needs closing. It is a mechanical emergency. Cells at the edge must pull, change shape, shift neighbours, and protect the tissue barrier while the damaged area seals.

Our labs newly published paper by Shu En Lim and Pablo Vicente-Munuera et.al. in the EMBO Journal, published in October 2026, adds an important layer to this picture. The study, titled “Three-dimensional mechanical cooperativity optimises epithelial wound healing”, reports that epithelial repair depends not only on movement across a flat surface, but also on coordinated changes through tissue depth.

The paper is available through its DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/s44318-026-00925-7.