Berlin 2012 – scientific programme

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BP: Fachverband Biologische Physik

BP 6: Physics of Cells II

BP 6.4: Talk

Monday, March 26, 2012, 16:00–16:15, H 1028

Mutant cell dynamics in hierarchical organized tissues and resistance development to molecular targeted treatment strategies — •Benjamin Werner and Arne Traulsen — Max Planck Institut für Evolutionsbiologie, Plön, Germany

Most cancers are caused by either a single or more often an accumulation of mutations and thereby altered cell differentiation properties. Nowadays many of these mutations are known and in individual cases molecular targeted drugs were developed, converting ultimate life threatening into chronic diseases. Unfortunately cancer cells tend to develop resistance, leading to treatment failures. We analyze a resistance inducing experiment by applying a minimalistic mathematical model and are able to infer important system parameters, highlighting different resistance mechanism [1]. Translating these in vitro results into an in vivo dynamics is challenging, due to complex cell interactions in hierarchical organized tissues. A minimalistic individual based mathematical model allows us to describe basic properties of mutant cell dynamics in such tissues, most important the cell compartment of the mutant origin and the time development of the mutant population [2]. From this it is apparent that small differences in vitro can lead to important consequences in vivo.

[1] Werner B, Lutz D, Brümmendorf TH,Traulsen A, Balabanov S (2011) Dynamics of resistance development to imatinib. PLoS One .

[2] Werner B, Dingli D, Lenaerts T, Pacheco J, Traulsen A (2011) Dynamics of mutant cells in hierarchical organized tissues. PLoS Comput Biol .