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Theoretical Biology of the Cell

Theoretical Biology of the Cell

Theoretical Biology of the Cell

A Dynamical-Systems Perspective
Hiroaki Takagi, Nara Medical University
Chikara Furusawa, The University of Tokyo
Satoshi Sawai, The University of Tokyo
Kunihiko Kaneko, Copenhagen University
June 2025
Not yet published - available from June 2025
Paperback
9781009397841
£64.99
GBP
Paperback

    To understand life phenomena, we must consider form, structure, organization, motion, and the roles they play in “living” functions. This book explores such elements through mathematical methods. Beginning with an overview of dynamical systems and stochastic processes, the chapters that follow build on experimental advances in quantitative data in cellular processes to demonstrate the applications of these mathematical methods to characterize living organisms. The topics covered include not only cellular motions but also temporal changes in metabolic components, protein levels, membrane potentials, cell types, and multicellular patterns, which are linked to functions such as cellular responses, adaptation, and morphogenesis. This book is intended for undergraduates, graduates, and researchers interested in theory and modeling in biology, in particular cell, developmental, and systems biology, also those in the fields of mathematics and physics who are interested in these topics.

    • Provides those working in biology an accessible introduction to mathematical methodologies
    • Demonstrates the applications of mathematical methodologies for analysing biological experimental data, especially cellular states
    • Chapters include exercises to facilitate student learning

    Product details

    June 2025
    Paperback
    9781009397841
    338 pages
    244 × 170 mm
    Not yet published - available from June 2025

    Table of Contents

    • 1. Introduction to dynamical systems for biology
    • 2. Input-output relationships of cell systems
    • 3. Oscillation and excitability in cellular dynamics
    • 4. Spatio-temporal pattern formation
    • 5. 'fluctuation' of intracellular dynamics
    • 6. Langevin equation and Fokker-Planck equation
    • 7. Dynamical system model of cell differentiation
    • 8. Spatiotemporal pattern produced by cells
    • 9. Theoretical approaches concerning the origin of life
    • 10. Information and biology
    • Notes
    • Index.
      Authors
    • Hiroaki Takagi , Nara Medical University

      Hiroaki Takagi is a Senior Assistant Professor of Physics at Nara Medical University, and a core member of Q-bioJP. His expertise lies in biophysics and nonlinear dynamics. He is interested in the functional significance of fluctuations and dynamics at molecular, cellular, and multicellular levels. Through analyses combining quantitative biological data and mathematical models, his research seeks to elucidate their mechanisms.

    • Chikara Furusawa , The University of Tokyo

      Chikara Furusawa is a Professor at the University of Tokyo and a team leader at RIKEN. His research aims to uncover universal characteristics in biological systems by combining theoretical analysis with high-throughput experimental approaches. His primary areas of study include evolutionary dynamics, cell differentiation, and metabolic dynamics, among others.

    • Satoshi Sawai , The University of Tokyo

      Satoshi Sawai is a Professor at the University of Tokyo. He has been fascinated with the slime mold Dictyostelium for more than two decades, considering it a hidden gem filled with mathematical ideas and concepts, which are covered in this book.

    • Kunihiko Kaneko , Copenhagen University

      Kunihiko Kaneko has been a Professor at the University of Tokyo for twenty-seven years, teaching mathematical biology and nonlinear dynamics, and he is currently at the Niels Bohr Institute. He was also Stanislaw Ulam Fellow at Los Alamos National Laboratory, visiting professor at Osaka University (Frontier Biosciences), University of Lyon, and Freiburg University, and is a Founding Director of Center for Complex Systems Biology and Universal Biology Institute at the University of Tokyo.