title: Inference of the drivers of collective movement in two cell types: Dictyostelium and melanoma.
abstract: Collective cell movement is a key component of many important biological processes, including wound healing, the immune response and the spread of cancers. To understand and influence these movements, we need to be able to identify and quantify the contribution of their different underlying mechanisms. Here, we define a set of six candidate models-formulated as advection-diffusion-reaction partial differential equations-that incorporate a range of cell movement drivers. We fitted these models to movement assay data from two different cell types: Dictyostelium discoideum and human melanoma. Model comparison using widely applicable information criterion suggested that movement in both of our study systems was driven primarily by a self-generated gradient in the concentration of a depletable chemical in the cells' environment. For melanoma, there was also evidence that overcrowding influenced movement. These applications of model inference to determine the most likely drivers of cell movement indicate that such statistical techniques have potential to support targeted experimental work in increasing our understanding of collective cell movement in a range of systems.
authors: Institute of Biodiversity, Animal Health and Comparative Medicine, College of Medical, Veterinary and Life Sciences, University of Glasgow, Glasgow, UK e.ferguson.2@research.gla.ac.uk.
authors: Elaine A
authors: 0000-0003-2010-765X
authors: EA
authors: Ferguson
authors: Institute of Biodiversity, Animal Health and Comparative Medicine, College of Medical, Veterinary and Life Sciences, University of Glasgow, Glasgow, UK.
authors: Jason
authors: J
authors: Matthiopoulos
authors: Cancer Research UK Beatson Institute, Glasgow, UK.
authors: Robert H
authors: 0000-0003-4898-040X
authors: RH
authors: Insall
authors: School of Mathematics and Statistics, College of Science and Engineering, University of Glasgow, Glasgow, UK.
authors: Dirk
authors: D
authors: Husmeier
mesh_terms: D045744:Cell Line, Tumor; D002465:Cell Movement; D004023:Dictyostelium / Q000166:cytology / Q000378:metabolism*; D006801:Humans; D008545:Melanoma / Q000378:metabolism* / Q000473:pathology; D008954:Models, Biological
keywords: advection–diffusion–reaction; bootstrapping; collective cell movement; model selection; self-generated gradients; widely applicable information criterion