title: Multi-scale computational modeling of developmental biology.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Normal development of multicellular organisms is regulated by a highly complex process in which a set of precursor cells proliferate, differentiate and move, forming over time a functioning tissue. To handle their complexity, developmental systems can be studied over distinct scales. The dynamics of each scale is determined by the collective activity of entities at the scale below it.
  
  
  RESULTS
  I describe a multi-scale computational approach for modeling developmental systems and detail the methodology through a synthetic example of a developmental system that retains key features of real developmental systems. I discuss the simulation of the system as it emerges from cross-scale and intra-scale interactions and describe how an in silico study can be carried out by modifying these interactions in a way that mimics in vivo experiments. I highlight biological features of the results through a comparison with findings in Caenorhabditis elegans germline development and finally discuss about the applications of the approach in real developmental systems and propose future extensions.
  
  
  METHODS
  The source code of the model of the synthetic developmental system can be found in www.wisdom.weizmann.ac.il/~yaki/MultiScaleModel.
  
  
  BACKGROUND
  yaki.setty@gmail.com
  
  
  BACKGROUND
  Supplementary data are available at Bioinformatics online.
authors.affiliation: Weizmann Institute of Science, Computer Science and Applied Mathematics, Rehovot, Israel. yaki.setty@gmail.com
authors.forename: Yaki
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Setty
mesh_terms: D000465:Algorithms; D000818:Animals; D017173:Caenorhabditis elegans / Q000254:growth & development; D019295:Computational Biology / Q000379:methods*; D003198:Computer Simulation; D015509:Developmental Biology; D008954:Models, Biological; D011381:Programming Languages