Reinventing the wheel?

https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2024/12/241211124342.htm
Are physical contraints anything new in developmental biology?  These guys are are changing developement without changing the genes, but the changes that they are creating is how the genes responsible for the phenotype respond to the new physical changes.
How long has it been known that development relies on the physical relationship between the cells?  People have been messing with the physical structures since the beginnings of embryology.  How is this different from cell transplants and putting mica sheets between cells in a developing frog embryo?
Ron Okimoto