LIMBO · A Limb-bud Integrated Microphysiological system to model the effect of Biophysical stimuli in musculoskeletal systems' Organogenesis

LIMBO aims to introduce a new class of microphysiological systems (MPSs) that replicate the mechanical microenvironment of the developing limb bud and integrate on-line volumetric spectroscopic analyses. This will provide new insights into biophysical factors in musculoskeletal tissue organogenesis, previously unknown due to technological limitations, and guide regenerative medicine approaches for age-related pathologies. Since Alan Turing's theorization in 1952, developmental biology has relied on the idea that morphogenesis stems from chemical patterns forming from initially uniform substances. Yet, advances in single-cell transcriptomics and lineage tracing have shown that biochemical and genetic instructions alone do not fully explain the self-organizing behavior of developing tissues. A new perspective suggests that mechanical forces are as crucial as gene expression and chemical diffusion, particularly for musculoskeletal tissues development