Integrated cellular and gene interaction model for cell migration in embryonic development

The relationship between cellular behaviors and protein concentrations is central for embryonic development. An integrated cellular and gene interaction model is proposed to reveal this relationship. Protein concentrations vary spatiotemporally based on locations of cell, gene-gene interactions and the diffusion mechanism. On the other hand, cellular behaviors differentiate spatially, driven by cell-cell communication and protein concentrations in each cell. The model integrates a variation of the reaction-diffusion equation at the gene expression level and a particle-based cellular model based on the differential adhesion hypothesis for cell sorting at the cellular level. Cell sorting based on the adhesion hypothesis and patterns of inhibitory genes were simulated to illustrate the model. This model provides a more comprehensive basis to explain pattern formation during embryogenesis, than existing approaches that ignore the cellular components.