Should I shrink or should I grow: cell size changes in tissue morphogenesis

Abstract

Cells change shape, move, divide, and die to sculpt tissues. Common to all these cell behaviours are cell size changes, which have recently emerged as key contributors to tissue morphogenesis. Cells can change their mass—the number of macromolecules they contain—or their volume—the space they encompass. Changes in cell mass and volume occur through different molecular mechanisms and at different timescales, slow for changes in mass and rapid for changes in volume. Therefore, changes in cell mass and cell volume, which are often linked, contribute to the development and shaping of tissues in different ways. Here, we review the molecular mechanisms by which cells can control and alter their size, and we discuss how changes in cell mass and volume contribute to tissue morphogenesis. The role that cell size control plays in developing embryos is only starting to be elucidated. Research on the signals that control cell size will illuminate our understanding of the cellular and molecular mechanisms that drive tissue morphogenesis.