Biomedical active matter: Emergence and breakdown of collective functionalities
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arXiv
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| Main Authors: | , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , |
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| Format: | Preprint |
| Published: |
2026
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| Subjects: | |
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| _version_ | 1866915868046262272 |
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| author | Mathijssen, Arnold Almohammadi, Hamed Altman, Lauren Calazans, Talia Ferencz, M. J. Fung, Michelle Lee, Ian J. Lisicki, Maciej Liu, Ivy Liu, Maggie Liu, Tianyi Park, Ernest Tao, Ran Thery, Albane Wang, Zeyuan Young, Margot |
| author_facet | Mathijssen, Arnold Almohammadi, Hamed Altman, Lauren Calazans, Talia Ferencz, M. J. Fung, Michelle Lee, Ian J. Lisicki, Maciej Liu, Ivy Liu, Maggie Liu, Tianyi Park, Ernest Tao, Ran Thery, Albane Wang, Zeyuan Young, Margot |
| contents | Living systems are made of active materials with microscopic components that work together to perform macroscopic biological tasks. The breakdown of these collective functionalities leads to diseases, which, conversely, could be treated by exploiting self-organization in healthcare technologies. Here, we review recent advances in this rapidly growing field of biomedical active matter. The main themes are (1) collective self-assembly and spatiotemporal coordination; (2) collective motion, transport, and navigation; (3) collective sensing, signaling, and communication; and (4) collective adaptation, evolution, and learning. We discuss these emerging processes in a wide range of systems, including protein folding, biomolecular condensates, cytoskeleton dynamics, intracellular flows, bacterial biofilms, quorum sensing, cilia synchronization, wound healing, biolocomotion, neurons, endocrine signalling, and cardiovascular flow networks. For each, we highlight medical conditions associated with reduced collective functionality and how they may be treated using microrobotic swarms, bioinspired metamaterials, diagnostics, lab-on-chip devices, organoids, and other active and adaptive matter innovations. |
| format | Preprint |
| id |
arxiv_https___arxiv_org_abs_2603_15778 |
| institution | arXiv |
| publishDate | 2026 |
| record_format | arxiv |
| spellingShingle | Biomedical active matter: Emergence and breakdown of collective functionalities Mathijssen, Arnold Almohammadi, Hamed Altman, Lauren Calazans, Talia Ferencz, M. J. Fung, Michelle Lee, Ian J. Lisicki, Maciej Liu, Ivy Liu, Maggie Liu, Tianyi Park, Ernest Tao, Ran Thery, Albane Wang, Zeyuan Young, Margot Biological Physics Soft Condensed Matter Living systems are made of active materials with microscopic components that work together to perform macroscopic biological tasks. The breakdown of these collective functionalities leads to diseases, which, conversely, could be treated by exploiting self-organization in healthcare technologies. Here, we review recent advances in this rapidly growing field of biomedical active matter. The main themes are (1) collective self-assembly and spatiotemporal coordination; (2) collective motion, transport, and navigation; (3) collective sensing, signaling, and communication; and (4) collective adaptation, evolution, and learning. We discuss these emerging processes in a wide range of systems, including protein folding, biomolecular condensates, cytoskeleton dynamics, intracellular flows, bacterial biofilms, quorum sensing, cilia synchronization, wound healing, biolocomotion, neurons, endocrine signalling, and cardiovascular flow networks. For each, we highlight medical conditions associated with reduced collective functionality and how they may be treated using microrobotic swarms, bioinspired metamaterials, diagnostics, lab-on-chip devices, organoids, and other active and adaptive matter innovations. |
| title | Biomedical active matter: Emergence and breakdown of collective functionalities |
| topic | Biological Physics Soft Condensed Matter |
| url | https://arxiv.org/abs/2603.15778 |