Mathematical Medicine and Biology Advance Access originally published online on December 21, 2005
Mathematical Medicine and Biology 2006 23(1):45-62; doi:10.1093/imammb/dqi016
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Mathematically modelling the effects of counting factor in Dictyostelium discoideum
1 Department of Mathematics, Brigham Young University, Provo, UT 84602-6539, USA, 2 Howard Hughes Medical Institute and, Department of Biochemistry and Cell Biology, Rice University, Houston, TX 77005-1892, USA
** Email: dallon{at}math.byu.edu
Size regulation is a crucial feature in many biological systems, with misregulation leading to dysplasia or hyperplasia. The recent discovery of counting factor (CF) in Dictyostelium discoideum will lead to a greater understanding of how the system regulates the size of a group of cells. In this paper we mathematically model the known effects of CF using two different models: a cellular automata model and a discrete continuum hybrid model. With the use of these models we are able to understand how modulation of adhesion and motile forces by CF can facilitate stream breakup. In addition, the modelling suggests a new possible mechanism for stream breakup involving the frequency of cell reorientation.
Keywords: cellular adhesion; size regulation; cell movement; orientation; group size; cell-number counting
Received on 26 April 2005. revised on 12 September 2005. accepted on 17 November 2005.
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