Agent-based Simulation of PI3K/Akt Pathway Activation in Breast Cancer

Computational science is playing a growing role in basic medical research in many ways. A key aspect of medical research and subsequent drug development is understanding exactly how biological systems operate on a macro and micro level. Through modeling of biological molecules, cells, tissues, and organs, and the networks of interactions, scientists can explore the mechanism through which these systems operate. Agent-based models are comprised of multiple, interacting agents situated within a model or simulation environment. A relationship between agents is specified, linking agents to other agents and / or other entities within a system. In an agent-based model, each component of a system of interest is represented as a discrete agent, with its own specific behavior (methods) and attributes (variables) . . . In my project, I attempted to apply this type of modeling on a much smaller biological scale. I considered not organs or cells or even organelles, but the actual proteins and lipids inside the cell, which has not been studied in the past years. The possibility of such rapid, cheap and exactly repeatable computer simulation of cellular signaling mechanisms represents a breakthrough in the study of cell biology. Here, I present the first agent-based model based on a cellular signaling pathway and show how it can be used to qualitatively study the effects of pathway perturbations, which may result in cancer…..

• Biology