Effective nonlocal kernels on reaction–diffusion networks

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jtbi.2020.110496Get rights and content
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Highlights

  • Kernel based model (KT model) includes nonlocal terms in convolution type.

  • KT model is a generalization of usual reaction–diffusion system.

  • A new method to derive kernels in KT model from arbitral microscopic networks is given.

  • The KT model with the reduced kernel can reproduce similar patterns to original phenomena.

Abstract

A new method to derive an essential integral kernel from any given reaction–diffusion network is proposed. Any network describing metabolites or signals with arbitrary many factors can be reduced to a single or a simpler system of integro-differential equations called “effective equation” including the reduced integral kernel (called “effective kernel”) in the convolution type. As one typical example, the Mexican hat shaped kernel is theoretically derived from two component activator-inhibitor systems. It is also shown that a three component system with quite different appearance from activator-inhibitor systems is reduced to an effective equation with the Mexican hat shaped kernel. It means that the two different systems have essentially the same effective equations and that they exhibit essentially the same spatial and temporal patterns. Thus, we can identify two different systems with the understanding in unified concept through the reduced effective kernels. Other two applications of this method are also given: Applications to pigment patterns on skins (two factors network with long range interaction) and waves of differentiation (called proneural waves) in visual systems on brains (four factors network with long range interaction). In the applications, we observe the reproduction of the same spatial and temporal patterns as those appearing in pre-existing models through the numerical simulations of the effective equations.

Keywords

Non-local convolution
Pattern formation
Network
Reaction–diffusion
Turing pattern

Cited by (0)

This work was supported in part by JST CREST (No. JPMJCR14D3) to S.-I. E., JSPS KAKENHI (No. 17K14228) to Y. T.