Collective is Different: Information Exchange and Speed-Accuracy Trade-Offs in Self-Organized Patterning
Name
lfnt-8qbt.pdf
Description
Published version
Size
6.02 MB
Format
Adobe PDF
Checksum (MD5)
105c15ac6c0216df98f1e6110d167227
Author(s)
Tripathi, Ashutosh
Dunkel, Jörn
Skinner, Dominic J
Date Issued
February 4, 2026
Journal
PRX Life
Publisher
American Physical Society (APS)
Version
Final published version
Abstract
During development, highly ordered structures emerge as cells collectively coordinate with each other. While recent advances have clarified how individual cells process and respond to external signals, understanding collective cellular decision making remains a major challenge. Here, we introduce a minimal, analytically tractable model of cell patterning via local cell-cell communication. Using this framework, we identify a trade-off between the speed and accuracy of collective pattern formation and, by adapting techniques from stochastic chemical kinetics, quantify how information flows between cells during patterning. Our analysis reveals counterintuitive features of collective patterning: globally optimized solutions do not necessarily maximize intercellular information transfer and individual cells may appear suboptimal in isolation. Moreover, the model predicts that instantaneous information shared between cells can be nonmonotonic in time as patterning occurs. An analysis of recent experimental data from lateral inhibition in Drosophila pupal abdomen finds a qualitatively similar effect.
Terms of Use
Creative Commons Attribution
Persistent DSpace Link
DOI of Published Version
https://doi.org/10.1103/lfnt-8qbt
