Anticipating critical transitions in epithelial-hybrid-mesenchymal cell-fate determination.

ABSTRACT: In the vicinity of a tipping point, critical transitions occur when small changes in an input condition cause sudden, large, and often irreversible changes in the state of a system. Many natural systems ranging from ecosystems to molecular biosystems are known to exhibit critical transitions in their response to stochastic perturbations. In diseases, an early prediction of upcoming critical transitions from a healthy to a disease state by using early-warning signals is of prime interest due to potential application in forecasting disease onset. Here, we analyze cell-fate transitions between different phenotypes (epithelial, hybrid-epithelial/mesenchymal [E/M], and mesenchymal states) that are implicated in cancer metastasis and chemoresistance. These transitions are mediated by a mutually

SUBMITTER: Sarkar S 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC6936706 | biostudies-literature | 2019 Dec

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature