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Multisite Mechanisms for Ultrasensitivity in Signal Transduction

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Nonautonomous Dynamical Systems in the Life Sciences

Part of the book series: Lecture Notes in Mathematics ((LNMBIOS,volume 2102))

Abstract

One of the key aspects in the study of cellular communication is understanding how cells receive a continuous input and transform it into a discrete, all-or-none output. Such so-called ultrasensitive dose responses can also be used in a variety of other contexts, from the efficient transport of oxygen in the blood to the regulation of the cell cycle and gene expression. This chapter provides a self contained mathematical review of the most important molecular models of ultrasensitivity in the literature, with an emphasis on mechanisms involving multisite modifications. The models described include two deeply influential systems based on allosteric behavior, the MWC and the KNF models. Also included is a description of more recent work by the author and colleagues of novel mechanisms using alternative hypotheses to create ultrasensitive behavior.

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Acknowledgements

I would like to thank my colleagues Qing Nie and Liming Wang as well as my student Shane Ryerson for their participation in the described research, and Jeremy Gunawardena for his mentoring and for introducing me into this field.

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  1. Mathematics Department, University of California, Irvine, Irvine, CA, USA

    Germán A. Enciso

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  1. Germán A. Enciso
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Correspondence to Germán A. Enciso .

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  1. Institut für Mathematik, Goethe-Universität Frankfurt, Frankfurt am Main, Germany

    Peter E. Kloeden

  2. Institut für Mathematik, Alpen-Adria Universität Klagenfurt, Klagenfurt am Wörthersee, Austria

    Christian Pötzsche

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Enciso, G.A. (2013). Multisite Mechanisms for Ultrasensitivity in Signal Transduction. In: Kloeden, P., Pötzsche, C. (eds) Nonautonomous Dynamical Systems in the Life Sciences. Lecture Notes in Mathematics(), vol 2102. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-03080-7_6

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