Hubaud, AlexisRegev, IdoMahadevan, LakshminarayananPourquié, Olivier2019-10-142017-10Hubaud, Alexis, Ido Regev, L. Mahadevan, and Olivier Pourquié. 2017. Excitable Dynamics and Yap-Dependent Mechanical Cues Drive the Segmentation Clock. Cell 171, no. 3: 668-82.e11.0092-8674http://nrs.harvard.edu/urn-3:HUL.InstRepos:41542965The periodic segmentation of the vertebrate body axis into somites, and later vertebrae, relies on a genetic oscillator (the segmentation clock) driving the rhythmic activity of signaling pathways in the presomitic mesoderm (PSM). To understand whether oscillations are an intrinsic property of individual cells or represent a population-level phenomenon, we established culture conditions for stable oscillations at the cellular level. This system was used to demonstrate that oscillations are a collective property of PSM cells that can be actively triggered by a dynamical quorum sensing signal involving Yap and Notch signaling. Manipulation of Yap-dependent mechanical cues is sufficient to predictably switch isolated PSM cells from a quiescent to an oscillatory state , a behavior reminiscent of excitability in other systems. Together, our work argues that the segmentation clock behaves as an excitable system, introducing a broader paradigm to study such dynamics in vertebrate morphogenesis. YAP and Notch collaborate to control collective cellular oscillations during somitogenesis.en-USJournal Article2019-10-1410.1016/j.cell.2017.08.043