Asymmetric stochastic switching driven by intrinsic molecular noise
Low-copy-number molecules are involved in many functions in cells. The intrinsic fluctuations of these numbers can enable stochastic switching between multiple steady states, inducing phenotypic variability. Herein we present a theoretical and computational study based on Master Equations and Fokker...
| Autores: | , , , |
|---|---|
| Formato: | artículo |
| Estado: | Versión publicada |
| Fecha de publicación: | 2012 |
| País: | España |
| Recursos: | Universidad de Barcelona |
| Repositorio: | Dipòsit Digital de la UB |
| OAI Identifier: | oai:diposit.ub.edu:2445/52849 |
| Acesso em linha: | https://hdl.handle.net/2445/52849 |
| Access Level: | acceso abierto |
| Palavra-chave: | Fenotip ADN Equació de Fokker-Planck Dinàmica molecular Processos estocàstics Diferenciació cel·lular Phenotype DNA Fokker-Planck equation Molecular dynamics Stochastic processes Cell diferentiation |
| Resumo: | Low-copy-number molecules are involved in many functions in cells. The intrinsic fluctuations of these numbers can enable stochastic switching between multiple steady states, inducing phenotypic variability. Herein we present a theoretical and computational study based on Master Equations and Fokker-Planck and Langevin descriptions of stochastic switching for a genetic circuit of autoactivation. We show that in this circuit the intrinsic fluctuations arising from low-copy numbers, which are inherently state-dependent, drive asymmetric switching. These theoretical results are consistent with experimental data that have been reported for the bistable system of the gallactose signaling network in yeast. Our study unravels that intrinsic fluctuations, while not required to describe bistability, are fundamental to understand stochastic switching and the dynamical relative stability of multiple states. |
|---|