Comparable ecological dynamics underlie early cancer invasion and species dispersal, involving self-organizing processes.

ABSTRACT: Occupancy of new habitats through dispersion is a central process in nature. In particular, long-distance dispersal is involved in the spread of species and epidemics, although it has not been previously related with cancer invasion, a process that involves cell spreading to tissues far away from the primary tumour. Using simulations and real data we show that the early spread of cancer cells is similar to the species individuals spread and we suggest that both processes are represented by a common spatio-temporal signature of long-distance dispersal and subsequent local proliferation. This signature is characterized by a particular fractal geometry of the boundaries of patches generated, and a power-law scaled, disrupted patch size distribution. In contrast, invasions involving only dispe

SUBMITTER: Marco DE 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC2873664 | biostudies-literature | 2009 Jan

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature