Network emergence and reorganization in confined slime moulds

Abstract

A fundamental question regarding biological transport networks is the interplay between the network development or reorganization and the flows it carries. We use Physarum polycephalum, a true slime mould with a transport network which adapts quickly to change of external conditions, as a biological model to make progress in this question. We explore the network formation and reorganization in samples suddenly confined in chambers with ring geometry. Using an image analysis method based on the structure tensor, we quantify the emergence and directionality of the network. We show that confinement induces a reorganization of the network with a typical 104 s timescale, during which veins align circumferentially along the ring. We show that this network evolution relies on local dynamics.