Modeling intercellular interactions in early Mycobacterium infection.
Infection with Mycobacterium tuberculosis (Mtb) is characterized by localized, roughly spherical lesions within which the pathogen interacts with host cells. Containment of the infection or progression of disease depends on the behavior of individual cells, which, in turn, depends on the local molecular environment and on contact with neighboring cells. Modeling can help us understand the nonlinear interactions that drive the overall dynamics in this system. Early events in infection are particularly important, as are spatial effects and inherently stochastic processes. We describe a model of early Mycobacterium infection using the CyCells simulator, which was designed to capture these effects. We relate CyCells simulations of the model to several experimental observations of individual components of the response to Mtb.
Warrender
Christina
C
Department of Computer Science, University of New Mexico, P.O. Box 5800 MS 1423, Albuquerque, NM 87185-1423, USA. cewarr@sandia.gov
Forrest
Stephanie
S
Koster
Frederick
F
D003198:Computer Simulation; D006801:Humans; D007371:Interferon-gamma / Q000276:immunology; D016753:Interleukin-10 / Q000276:immunology; D016676:Macrophages, Alveolar / Q000276:immunology / Q000382:microbiology; D008954:Models, Biological; D009169:Mycobacterium tuberculosis / Q000502:physiology*; D013601:T-Lymphocytes / Q000276:immunology / Q000382:microbiology; D014376:Tuberculosis / Q000276:immunology / Q000382:microbiology*; D014409:Tumor Necrosis Factor-alpha / Q000276:immunology
D014409:Tumor Necrosis Factor-alpha; D016753:Interleukin-10; D007371:Interferon-gamma