Growth Cone Pathfinding: a competition between deterministic and stochastic events

Autor: Buettner Helen M, Maskery Susan M, Shinbrot Troy
Jazyk: angličtina
Rok vydání: 2004
Předmět:
Zdroj: BMC Neuroscience, Vol 5, Iss 1, p 22 (2004)
Druh dokumentu: article
ISSN: 1471-2202
DOI: 10.1186/1471-2202-5-22
Popis: Abstract Background Growth cone migratory patterns show evidence of both deterministic and stochastic search modes. Results We quantitatively examine how these two different migration modes affect the growth cone's pathfinding response, by simulating growth cone contact with a repulsive cue and measuring the resultant turn angle. We develop a dimensionless number, we call the determinism ratio Ψ, to define the ratio of deterministic to stochastic influences driving the growth cone's migration in response to an external guidance cue. We find that the growth cone can exhibit three distinct types of turning behaviors depending on the magnitude of Ψ. Conclusions We conclude, within the context of these in silico studies, that only when deterministic and stochastic migration factors are in balance (i.e. Ψ ~ 1) can the growth cone respond constructively to guidance cues.
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