Power-law scaling of bioelectric morphodynamic activity demarcates limb bud compartments

Growing evidence suggests that bioelectrical activity of embryonic tissues, the morphogenetic dynamics, contains specific signatures for distinct mesodermal compartments of the developing limb, potentially enabling compartment classification based on it, even during morphostatic phases. However, existing algorithms for extracting specific characteristics may succeed only in narrowly defined model systems, or well-characterized mutant cohorts, but often fail to identify stable features across heterogeneous populations. Our study examines in vivo multi-site microelectrode recordings, assessing power-law behavior in power spectral density during the proliferative and patterning stages across three limb bud domains—anterior, posterior and dorsal ectoderm—in 55 embryos. Results indicate the presence of power-law behavior, implying scale-free dynamics in the investigated territories. Notably, the power-law exponent in the high-frequency range distinguishes tissue domains both during proliferation and patterning and suggests a stable scale-free signature within each region possibly regardless of developmental stage. This insight offers valuable guidance for evaluating physiological facets of local morphogenesis and supports population-level functional tissue compartmentalization.