| 01/2026 Intermediate physical interactions induce spatiotemporal dynamics in Turing patterns Cathelijne ter Burg et al. Turing patterns are a central paradigm for describing spatial patterns in nature. The corresponding theory of reaction-diffusion dynamics combines ideal diffusion with nonlinear reactions, resulting in patterns when species diffuse at different rates and reactions are sufficiently nonlinear. However, real systems are more complex and particularly involve physical interactions between constituents. … |
| 01/2026 Supercoiling DNA with a free end Daniela Moretti et al. In this work, we combine coarse-grained Brownian dynamics simulations and mean-field theory to study supercoiling dynamics, as well as the steady-state profiles of twist and writhe, in an open DNA polymer where one of the free ends is subjected to a constant torque. Even though the other end is free, and hence can spin and release torsional stress, we observe that the entire chain transitions betw … |
| 01/2026 Roadmap for Condensates in Cell Biology Dilimulati Aierken et al. Biomolecular condensates govern essential cellular processes yet elude description by traditional equilibrium models. This roadmap, distilled from structured discussions at a workshop and reflecting the consensus of its participants, clarifies key concepts for researchers, funding bodies, and journals. After unifying terminology that often separates disciplines, we outline the core physics of cond … |
| 01/2026 Self-diffusiophoretic propulsion in wedge confinement: The role of phoretic interactions Abdallah Daddi-Moussa-Ider et al. We investigate the self-diffusiophoretic motion of a catalytically active spherical particle confined within a wedge-shaped domain. Using the Fourier-Kontorovich-Lebedev transform, we solve the Laplace equation for the concentration field in the diffusion-dominated regime. The method of images is employed to obtain the first and second reflections of the concentration field, accounting for both mo … |
| 12/2025 Optimizing infectious disease mitigation under dynamic conditions Laura Müller et al. Mitigation measures are essential for controlling the spread of infectious diseases during pandemics and epidemics, but they impose considerable societal, individual, and economic costs. We developed a general optimization framework to balance costs related to infection and to mitigation. Optimizing the trade-off between mitigation and infection cost, we identified three novel, surprising effects: … |
| 12/2025 Size control guidelines for chemically active droplets Guido Kusters et al. Biological cells and synthetic analogues use liquid-liquid phase separation to dynamically compartmentalize their environment for various applications. In many cases, multiple droplets need to coexist, and their size needs to be controlled, which is challenging because large droplets tend to grow at the expense of smaller ones. Chemical reactions can, in principle, control droplet sizes, but there … |
| 12/2025 Dimensionality and confinement reshape competition in cellular renewing active matter Patrick Zimmer et al. Cellular renewing active matter – assemblies of proliferating and apoptotic cells – underlies tissue homeostasis, morphogenesis, and clonal competition. Previous work in one-dimensional periodic systems identified a fitness advantage associated with rapid dead-cell clearance, an "opportunistic" competition mechanism. Extending this framework, we study two-dimensional cellular aggregates … |
| 12/2025 Orientational lineage memory and mechanical ordering during diffusion-limited growth Ilias-Marios Sarris et al. Growth and shape formation in crowded multicellular assemblies arise from the interplay of chemical gradients, single-cell expansion and mechanical interactions, making it essential to understand how these processes jointly shape collective organization. Using a particle-based model that resolves nutrient fields as well as cellular orientations and their inheritance, we investigate how orientation … |
| 12/2025 Order and shape dependence of mechanical relaxation in proliferating active matter Jonas Isensee et al. Collective dynamics in proliferating anisotropic particle systems arise from an interplay between growth, division, and mechanical interactions, often mediated by particle shape. In classical models of prolate, rod-like growth, flow-induced alignment and division geometry reinforce one another, leading to robust nematic order under confinement. Here we introduce a complementary regime by consideri … |
| 11/2025 Non-reciprocal interactions between condensates in chemically active mixtures Jacopo Romano et al. We study the behaviour of catalytically active droplets in multi-component conserved mixtures affected by noise. Working in the thin interface limit, we analytically determine the state diagram of the system, characterized by multiple dynamical regimes, and verify our findings using numerical simulations. In particular, we show the emergence of a non-reciprocal, chemically-mediated interaction bet … |