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Katsaounis D, Harbour N, Williams T, Chaplain MA, Sfakianakis N. A Genuinely Hybrid, Multiscale 3D Cancer Invasion and Metastasis Modelling Framework. Bull Math Biol 2024; 86:64. [PMID: 38664343 PMCID: PMC11045634 DOI: 10.1007/s11538-024-01286-0] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/15/2023] [Accepted: 03/22/2024] [Indexed: 04/28/2024]
Abstract
We introduce in this paper substantial enhancements to a previously proposed hybrid multiscale cancer invasion modelling framework to better reflect the biological reality and dynamics of cancer. These model updates contribute to a more accurate representation of cancer dynamics, they provide deeper insights and enhance our predictive capabilities. Key updates include the integration of porous medium-like diffusion for the evolution of Epithelial-like Cancer Cells and other essential cellular constituents of the system, more realistic modelling of Epithelial-Mesenchymal Transition and Mesenchymal-Epithelial Transition models with the inclusion of Transforming Growth Factor beta within the tumour microenvironment, and the introduction of Compound Poisson Process in the Stochastic Differential Equations that describe the migration behaviour of the Mesenchymal-like Cancer Cells. Another innovative feature of the model is its extension into a multi-organ metastatic framework. This framework connects various organs through a circulatory network, enabling the study of how cancer cells spread to secondary sites.
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Affiliation(s)
- Dimitrios Katsaounis
- School of Mathematics and Statistics, University St Andrews, North Haugh, St Andrews, UK.
| | - Nicholas Harbour
- School of Mathematical Sciences, University Nottingham, Nottingham, UK
| | - Thomas Williams
- School of Mathematics and Statistics, The University of Melbourne, Melbourne, Australia
| | - Mark Aj Chaplain
- School of Mathematics and Statistics, University St Andrews, North Haugh, St Andrews, UK
| | - Nikolaos Sfakianakis
- School of Mathematics and Statistics, University St Andrews, North Haugh, St Andrews, UK
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Baldwin SA, Haugh JM. Semi-autonomous wound invasion via matrix-deposited, haptotactic cues. J Theor Biol 2023; 568:111506. [PMID: 37094713 PMCID: PMC10393182 DOI: 10.1016/j.jtbi.2023.111506] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/20/2022] [Revised: 04/18/2023] [Accepted: 04/19/2023] [Indexed: 04/26/2023]
Abstract
Proper wound healing relies on invasion of fibroblasts via directed migration. While the related experimental and mathematical modeling literature has mainly focused on cell migration directed by soluble cues (chemotaxis), there is ample evidence that fibroblast migration is also directed by insoluble, matrix-bound cues (haptotaxis). Furthermore, numerous studies indicate that fibronectin (FN), a haptotactic ligand for fibroblasts, is present and dynamic in the provisional matrix throughout the proliferative phase of wound healing. In the present work, we show the plausibility of a hypothesis that fibroblasts themselves form and maintain haptotactic gradients in a semi-autonomous fashion. As a precursor to this, we examine the positive control scenario where FN is pre-deposited in the wound matrix, and fibroblasts maintain haptotaxis by removing FN at an appropriate rate. After developing conceptual and quantitative understanding of this scenario, we consider two cases in which fibroblasts activate the latent form of a matrix-loaded cytokine, TGFβ, which upregulates the fibroblasts' own secretion of FN. In the first of these, the latent cytokine is pre-patterned and released by the fibroblasts. In the second, fibroblasts in the wound produce the latent TGFβ, with the presence of the wound providing the only instruction. In all cases, wound invasion is more effective than a negative control model with haptotaxis disabled; however, there is a trade-off between the degree of fibroblast autonomy and the rate of invasion.
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Affiliation(s)
- Scott A Baldwin
- Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering, North Carolina State University, Campus Box 7905, Raleigh, NC 27695, USA
| | - Jason M Haugh
- Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering, North Carolina State University, Campus Box 7905, Raleigh, NC 27695, USA.
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Katsaounis D, Chaplain MAJ, Sfakianakis N. Stochastic differential equation modelling of cancer cell migration and tissue invasion. J Math Biol 2023; 87:8. [PMID: 37318599 PMCID: PMC10271912 DOI: 10.1007/s00285-023-01934-4] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/20/2022] [Revised: 05/09/2023] [Accepted: 05/14/2023] [Indexed: 06/16/2023]
Abstract
Invasion of the surrounding tissue is a key aspect of cancer growth and spread involving a coordinated effort between cell migration and matrix degradation, and has been the subject of mathematical modelling for almost 30 years. In this current paper we address a long-standing question in the field of cancer cell migration modelling. Namely, identify the migratory pattern and spread of individual cancer cells, or small clusters of cancer cells, when the macroscopic evolution of the cancer cell colony is dictated by a specific partial differential equation (PDE). We show that the usual heuristic understanding of the diffusion and advection terms of the PDE being one-to-one responsible for the random and biased motion of the solitary cancer cells, respectively, is not precise. On the contrary, we show that the drift term of the correct stochastic differential equation scheme that dictates the individual cancer cell migration, should account also for the divergence of the diffusion of the PDE. We support our claims with a number of numerical experiments and computational simulations.
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Affiliation(s)
- Dimitrios Katsaounis
- School of Mathematics and Statistics, University of St Andrews, North Haugh, St Andrews, KY16 9SS Scotland, UK
| | - Mark A. J. Chaplain
- School of Mathematics and Statistics, University of St Andrews, North Haugh, St Andrews, KY16 9SS Scotland, UK
| | - Nikolaos Sfakianakis
- School of Mathematics and Statistics, University of St Andrews, North Haugh, St Andrews, KY16 9SS Scotland, UK
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Gong S, Shahriyari L. A Review of Stochastic and Deterministic Modeling of Stem Cell Dynamics. CURRENT STEM CELL REPORTS 2023. [DOI: 10.1007/s40778-023-00225-4] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/27/2023]
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Heidary Z, Haghjooy Javanmard S, Izadi I, Zare N, Ghaisari J. Multiscale modeling of collective cell migration elucidates the mechanism underlying tumor-stromal interactions in different spatiotemporal scales. Sci Rep 2022; 12:16242. [PMID: 36171274 PMCID: PMC9519582 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-022-20634-5] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/15/2022] [Accepted: 09/15/2022] [Indexed: 11/09/2022] Open
Abstract
Metastasis is the pathogenic spread of cancer cells from a primary tumor to a secondary site which happens at the late stages of cancer. It is caused by a variety of biological, chemical, and physical processes, such as molecular interactions, intercellular communications, and tissue-level activities. Complex interactions of cancer cells with their microenvironment components such as cancer associated fibroblasts (CAFs) and extracellular matrix (ECM) cause them to adopt an invasive phenotype that promotes tumor growth and migration. This paper presents a multiscale model for integrating a wide range of time and space interactions at the molecular, cellular, and tissue levels in a three-dimensional domain. The modeling procedure starts with presenting nonlinear dynamics of cancer cells and CAFs using ordinary differential equations based on TGFβ, CXCL12, and LIF signaling pathways. Unknown kinetic parameters in these models are estimated using hybrid unscented Kalman filter and the models are validated using experimental data. Then, the principal role of CAFs on metastasis is revealed by spatial-temporal modeling of circulating signals throughout the TME. At this stage, the model has evolved into a coupled ODE-PDE system that is capable of determining cancer cells' status in one of the quiescent, proliferating or migratory conditions due to certain metastasis factors and ECM characteristics. At the tissue level, we consider a force-based framework to model the cancer cell proliferation and migration as the final step towards cancer cell metastasis. The ability of the multiscale model to depict cancer cells' behavior in different levels of modeling is confirmed by comparing its outputs with the results of RT PCR and wound scratch assay techniques. Performance evaluation of the model indicates that the proposed multiscale model can pave the way for improving the efficiency of therapeutic methods in metastasis prevention.
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Affiliation(s)
- Zarifeh Heidary
- Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering, Isfahan University of Technology, Isfahan, 84156-83111, Iran
| | - Shaghayegh Haghjooy Javanmard
- Department of Physiology, Applied Physiology Research Center, Isfahan Cardiovascular Research Institute, Isfahan University of Medical Sciences, Isfahan, 81746-73461, Iran
| | - Iman Izadi
- Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering, Isfahan University of Technology, Isfahan, 84156-83111, Iran
| | - Nasrin Zare
- School of Medicine, Najafabad Branch, Islamic Azad University, Isfahan, Iran
| | - Jafar Ghaisari
- Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering, Isfahan University of Technology, Isfahan, 84156-83111, Iran.
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Franssen LC, Sfakianakis N, Chaplain MAJ. A novel 3D atomistic-continuum cancer invasion model: In silico simulations of an in vitro organotypic invasion assay. J Theor Biol 2021; 522:110677. [PMID: 33781776 DOI: 10.1016/j.jtbi.2021.110677] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/24/2020] [Accepted: 03/10/2021] [Indexed: 10/21/2022]
Abstract
We develop a three-dimensional genuinely hybrid atomistic-continuum model that describes the invasive growth dynamics of individual cancer cells in tissue. The framework explicitly accounts for phenotypic variation by distinguishing between cancer cells of an epithelial-like and a mesenchymal-like phenotype. It also describes mutations between these cell phenotypes in the form of epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT) and its reverse process mesenchymal-epithelial transition (MET). The proposed model consists of a hybrid system of partial and stochastic differential equations that describe the evolution of epithelial-like and mesenchymal-like cancer cells, respectively, under the consideration of matrix-degrading enzyme concentrations and the extracellular matrix density. With the help of inverse parameter estimation and a sensitivity analysis, this three-dimensional model is then calibrated to an in vitro organotypic invasion assay experiment of oral squamous cell carcinoma cells.
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Affiliation(s)
- Linnea C Franssen
- School of Mathematics and Statistics, University of St Andrews, Scotland, UK; Roche, pRED, Translational Modeling & Simulation, Basel, Switzerland.
| | | | - Mark A J Chaplain
- School of Mathematics and Statistics, University of St Andrews, Scotland, UK.
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Deciphering the Dynamics of Epithelial-Mesenchymal Transition and Cancer Stem Cells in Tumor Progression. CURRENT STEM CELL REPORTS 2019. [DOI: 10.1007/s40778-019-0150-3] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/13/2022]
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Sfakianakis N, Brunk A. Stability, Convergence, and Sensitivity Analysis of the FBLM and the Corresponding FEM. Bull Math Biol 2018; 80:2789-2827. [PMID: 30159856 DOI: 10.1007/s11538-018-0460-0] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/12/2017] [Accepted: 06/29/2018] [Indexed: 10/28/2022]
Abstract
We study in this paper the filament-based lamellipodium model (FBLM) and the corresponding finite element method (FEM) used to solve it. We investigate fundamental numerical properties of the FEM and justify its further use with the FBLM. We show that the FEM satisfies a time step stability condition that is consistent with the nature of the problem and propose a particular strategy to automatically adapt the time step of the method. We show that the FEM converges with respect to the (two-dimensional) space discretization in a series of characteristic and representative chemotaxis and haptotaxis experiments. We embed and couple the FBLM with a complex and adaptive extracellular environment comprised of chemical and adhesion components that are described by their macroscopic density and study their combined time evolution. With this combination, we study the sensitivity of the FBLM on several of its controlling parameters and discuss their influence in the dynamics of the model and its future evolution. We finally perform a number of numerical experiments that reproduce biological cases and compare the results with the ones reported in the literature.
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Affiliation(s)
- N Sfakianakis
- Institute of Applied Mathematics, Heidelberg University, Im Neuenheimer Feld 205, 69120, Heidelberg, Germany.
| | - A Brunk
- Institute of Mathematics, Johannes Gutenberg-University, Staudingerweg 9, 55128, Mainz, Germany
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