Scientists identify "mechanotypes" as the physical bridge between genetic codes and diverse animal body shapes

Researchers reveal "mechanotypes" as the physical link between genes and shape, allowing them to predict and manipulate the forms of corals and sea anemones.

By: AXL Media

Published: Mar 21, 2026, 6:52 AM EDT

Source: Information for this report was sourced from European Molecular Biology Laboratory

Reviving the Theories of D’Arcy Thompson

For over a century, the biological community has debated the extent to which physical laws dictate the form of living organisms. While modern biology has focused almost exclusively on the "genotype"—the genetic blueprint—as the source of diversity, genes alone cannot explain how tissues physically bend and stretch into complex shapes. Researchers at EMBL have now put the theories of 20th-century biologist D’Arcy Thompson into practice, identifying "mechanotypes" as the mesoscopic physical principles that fill the gap between DNA and final body structure.

Defining the Three Mechanical Modules

By studying Cnidarians—a phylum including jellyfish, corals, and sea anemones—the research team identified three "mechanical modules" that act as the primary drivers of shape. These modules can be adjusted like tuning knobs to determine two vital features of an animal's body plan: elongation and polarity. Elongation measures how stretched a body is along its main axis, while polarity describes the symmetry and width of the oral end relative to the base. Each species possesses a unique combination of these modules, defining its specific mechanotype.

Predicting Form Through Theoretical Physics

The study utilized expertise from theoretical physicists to create mathematical models involving only a few key parameters. This approach revealed that despite the vast diversity of shapes in the ocean, most can be predicted by calculating how tissues generate forces and respond to mechanical constraints. This "emergent feature" of complex biological systems allows scientists to predict an organism's final shape based on its mechanical properties, a feat that is currently impossible to achieve through genomic analysis alone.