Computer simulations of in vitro morphogenesis

Authored by Andreea Robu, Roxana Aldea, Oana Munteanu, Monica Neagu, Lacramioara Stoicu-Tivadar, Adrian Neagu

Date Published: 2012-09

DOI: 10.1016/j.biosystems.2012.06.002

Sponsors: Romanian National Council of Scientific Research (Consiliul National al Cercetarii Stiintifice din Invatamantul Superior CNCSIS)

Platforms: No platforms listed

Model Documentation: Other Narrative

Model Code URLs: Model code not found

Abstract

One of the most important challenges of contemporary biology is understanding how cells assemble into tissues. The complexity of morphogenesis calls for computational tools able to identify the dominant mechanisms involved in shaping tissues. This narrative review presents individual-based computational models that proved useful in simulating phenomena of interest in tissue engineering (TE), a research field that aims to create tissue replacements in the laboratory. First, we briefly describe morphogenetic mechanisms. Then, we present several computational models of cellular and subcellular resolution, along with applications that illustrate their potential to address problems of TE. Finally, we analyze experiments that may be used to validate computational models of tissue constructs made of cohesive cells. Our analysis shows that the models available in the literature are not exploited to their full potential. We argue that, upon validation, a computational model can be used to optimize cell culture conditions and to design new experiments. (C) 2012 Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.

Tags

Agent-based model Cellular Particle Dynamics Cellular Potts Model Elastic sphere model Subcellular Element Model Viscoelastic Ellipsoid Model