Spatial modeling of vesicle transport and the cytoskeleton: the challenge of hitting the right road.

ABSTRACT: The membrane trafficking machinery provides a transport and sorting system for many cellular proteins. We propose a mechanistic agent-based computer simulation to integrate and test the hypothesis of vesicle transport embedded into a detailed model cell. The method tracks both the number and location of the vesicles. Thus both the stochastic properties due to the low numbers and the spatial aspects are preserved. The underlying molecular interactions that control the vesicle actions are included in a multi-scale manner based on the model of Heinrich and Rapoport (2005). By adding motor proteins we can improve the recycling process of SNAREs and model cell polarization. Our model also predicts that coat molecules should have a high turnover at the compartment membranes, while the turnover o

SUBMITTER: Klann M 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC3257240 | biostudies-literature | 2012

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature