FIGURE 1:

Physical models of tip growth in walled cells recapitulate cell shapes across kingdoms. These simulations depict (A) the emergence of a polarized projection from a sphere; (B) transition from tip growth to the formation of a spherical knob; (C) how changes in parameters alter tip shape; (D) periodic rates of tip growth; and (E) the formation of a beaded rod shape via periodic regulation of cell-wall properties at the growing tip. Reproduced with permission from Dumais et al. (2006).