title: On-lattice simulation of T cell motility, chemotaxis, and trafficking in the lymph node paracortex.
abstract: Agent-based simulation is a powerful method for investigating the complex interplay of the processes occurring in a lymph node during an adaptive immune response. We have previously established an agent-based modeling framework for the interactions between T cells and dendritic cells within the paracortex of lymph nodes. This model simulates in three dimensions the "random-walk" T cell motility observed in vivo, so that cells interact in space and time as they process signals and commit to action such as proliferation. On-lattice treatment of cell motility allows large numbers of densely packed cells to be simulated, so that the low frequency of T cells capable of responding to a single antigen can be dealt with realistically. In this paper we build on this model by incorporating new numerical methods to address the crucial processes of T cell ingress and egress, and chemotaxis, within the lymph node. These methods enable simulation of the dramatic expansion and contraction of the T cell population in the lymph node paracortex during an immune response. They also provide a novel probabilistic method to simulate chemotaxis that will be generally useful in simulating other biological processes in which chemotaxis is an important feature.
authors.affiliation: Maurice Wilkins Centre, University of Auckland, Aukland, New Zealand. g.bogle@auckland.ac.nz
authors.forename: Gib
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Bogle
authors.forename: P Rod
authors.initials: PR
authors.lastname: Dunbar
mesh_terms: D056704:Adaptive Immunity; D000818:Animals; D000941:Antigens / Q000276:immunology; D002450:Cell Communication / Q000276:immunology; D002633:Chemotaxis / Q000276:immunology*; D003198:Computer Simulation; D003713:Dendritic Cells / Q000166:cytology* / Q000276:immunology; D006801:Humans; D008198:Lymph Nodes / Q000166:cytology* / Q000276:immunology; D008213:Lymphocyte Activation; D051379:Mice; D018448:Models, Immunological; D051381:Rats; D013601:T-Lymphocytes / Q000166:cytology* / Q000276:immunology
chemical_list: D000941:Antigens