Title
Criticality of Gene Regulatory Networks and the Resulting Morphogenesis
Authors
Hyobin Kim, Hiroki Sayama
Schedule
Date: Thursday 7 Sept
Talk Time: TBA
Session: Morphogenesis 10:30
Keywords
Random Boolean network, Gene regulatory network, Criticality, Nontrivial spatial pattern, Morphology
Abstract
We present morphogenetic systems which use Kauffman’s NK random Boolean network (RBN) as a gene regulatory network (GRN) and spring-mass-damper kinetics for cellular movements. Using our model, we investigate what role the criticality of GRNs plays in morphogenetic pattern formation. Our model represents a cell aggregation, where all the cells have identical GRNs. The properties of GRNs are varied from ordered, through critical, to chaotic by adjusting in-degree (K) of nodes of a GRN. For cellular behaviors, cell fates such as proliferation, differentiation, apoptosis and quiescence are assigned to the attractors of RBNs. From three types of morphogenetic systems taking ordered, critical, and chaotic GRNs, we obtained diverse morphologies. We found that nontrivial spatial patterns were most generated in morphogenetic systems with critical GRNs. Our finding indicates that the criticality of GRNs facilitates the formation of nontrivial morphologies in GRN-based morphogenetic systems.
