Parameter-free methods distinguish Wnt pathway models and guide design of experiments.

ABSTRACT: The canonical Wnt signaling pathway, mediated by β-catenin, is crucially involved in development, adult stem cell tissue maintenance, and a host of diseases including cancer. We analyze existing mathematical models of Wnt and compare them to a new Wnt signaling model that targets spatial localization; our aim is to distinguish between the models and distill biological insight from them. Using Bayesian methods we infer parameters for each model from mammalian Wnt signaling data and find that all models can fit this time course. We appeal to algebraic methods (concepts from chemical reaction network theory and matroid theory) to analyze the models without recourse to specific parameter values. These approaches provide insight into aspects of Wnt regulation: the new model, via control of shut

SUBMITTER: MacLean AL 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC4352827 | biostudies-literature | 2015 Mar

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature