Recursive distributional equations (RDEs) are ubiquitous in probability. For example, the standard Gaussian distribution can be characterized as the unique fixed point of the following RDE
X=(X1+X2)/√2
among the class of centered random variables with standard deviation of 1. (The equality in the equation is in distribution; the random variables and must all be identically distributed; and and must be independent.)
Recently, it has been discovered that the dynamics of certain recursive distributional equations can be solved using by using tools from numerical analysis, on the convergence of approximation schemes for PDEs. In particular, the framework for studying stability and convergence for viscosity solutions of nonlinear second order equations, due to Crandall-Lions, Barles-Souganidis, and others, can be used to prove distributional convergence for certain families of RDEs, which can be interpreted as tree- valued stochastic processes. I will survey some of these results, as well as the (current) limitations of the method, and our hope for further interplay between these two research areas.
Synthetic biology offers bottom-up engineering strategies that intends to understand complex systems via design-build-test cycles. In development, gene regulatory networks emerge into collective cellular behaviors with multicellular forms and functions. Here, I will introduce a synthetic developmental biology approach for tissue engineering. It involves building developmental trajectories in stem cells via programmed gene circuits and network analysis. The outcome of our approach is decoding our own development and to create programmable organoids with both natural or artificial designs and augmented functions.
Emergent Research: The PIMS Postdoctoral Fellow Seminar
Abstract:
We develop a general framework for identifying phase reduced equations for finite populations of coupled oscillators that is valid far beyond the weak coupling approximation. This strategy represents a general extension of the theory from [Wilson and Ermentrout, Phys. Rev. Lett 123, 164101 (2019)] and yields coupling functions that are valid to higher-order accuracy in the coupling strength for arbitrary types of coupling (e.g., diffusive, gap-junction, chemical synaptic). These coupling functions can be used to understand the behavior of potentially high-dimensional, nonlinear oscillators in terms of their phase differences. The proposed formulation accurately replicates nonlinear bifurcations that emerge as the coupling strength increases and is valid in regimes well beyond those that can be considered using classic weak coupling assumptions. We demonstrate the performance of our approach through two examples. First, we use diffusively coupled complex Ginzburg-Landau (CGL) model and demonstrate that our theory accurately predicts bifurcations far beyond the range of existing coupling theory. Second, we use a realistic conductance-based model of a thalamic neuron and show that our theory correctly predicts asymptotic phase differences for non-weak synaptic coupling. In both examples, our theory accurately captures model behaviors that weak coupling theories can not.
Speaker Biography
Youngmin Park, Ph.D., is currently a PIMS Postdoc at the University of Manitoba under the supervision of Prof. Stéphanie Portet. He received his PhD in Mathematics from the University of Pittsburgh in 2018, where he applied dynamical systems methods to problems in neuroscience. His first postdoc involved auditory neuroscience research at the University of Pennsylvania in the Department of Otorhinolaryngology, before moving on to his next postdoc researching molecular motor dynamics in the Department of Mathematics at Brandeis University. He is now at Manitoba, continuing to apply dynamical systems methods to biological questions related to molecular motor transport and neural oscillators.
Motivated by recent work with biologists, I will showcase some mathematical results on Turing instabilities in complex domains. This is scientifically related to understanding developmental tuning in a variety of settings such as mouse whiskers, human fingerprints, bat teeth, and more generally pattern formation on multiple scales and evolving domains. Some of these problems are natural extensions of classical reaction-diffusion models, amenable to standard linear stability analysis, whereas others require the development of new tools and approaches. These approaches also help close the vast gap between the simple theory of diffusion-driven pattern formation, and the messy reality of biological development, though there is still much work to be done in validating even complex theories against the rich pattern dynamics observed in nature. I will emphasize throughout the role that Turing's 1952 paper had in these developments, and how much of our modern progress (and difficulties) were predicted in this paper. I will close by discussing a range of open questions, many of which fall well beyond the extensions I will discuss, but at least some of which were known to Turing.
Active matter systems, ranging from liquid crystals to populations of cells and animals, exhibit complex collective behavior characterized by pattern formation and dynamic phase transitions. However, quantitative classification is challenging for heterogeneous populations of varying size, and typically requires manual supervision. In this talk, I will demonstrate that a combination of topological data analysis (TDA) and machine learning can uniquely identify the spatial arrangement of agents by keeping track of clusters, loops, and voids at multiple scales. To validate the approach, I will present 3 case studies: (1) data-driven modeling and analysis of epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT) in mammary epithelia, (2) unsupervised classification of cell sorting, and self-assembly patterns in co-cultures, and (3) parameter recovery from animal swarming trajectories.
The plasma membrane contains a wide array of glycans and glycolipids, many of which are capped by sialic acids (also called neuraminic acid). As a result, sialic acids are front-line mediators of interactions between the extracellular surface and the external environment. Examples include host-pathogen interactions (e.g. influenza) and the recognition of host cells by leukocytes (white blood cells). Thus, the composition of sialosides in the membrane can influence receptor-receptor interactions critical to immunity and cellular function. Our group is investigating the influence of sialic acid on the function of adhesion and immune receptors through the development of tools that alter catabolism of membrane sialosides. The human neuraminidases (NEU) are a family of four isoenzymes (NEU1, NEU2, NEU3, and NEU4) which have a range of substrate preferences as well as cellular and tissue localization. Our group has developed a panel of selective inhibitors, many with nanomolar potency, are being used to investigate how degradation of sialosides influences the function of cellular receptors. We use fluorescence microscopy to measure the size of receptor clusters and lateral mobility of receptors. These biophysical methods provide critical insight into the influence of NEU activity on membrane receptor organization. We have examined the role of NEU enzymes on the function and organization of leukocyte adhesion receptors. We find that specific NEU enzymes can modulate integrin adhesion and affect leukocyte transmigration. In related work, we have examined the influence of synthetic glycoconjugates and inhibitors of NEU on the organization of the CD22 receptor of B cells. We propose that understanding the specific roles of NEU isoenzymes will identify new therapeutic strategies for autoimmunity, inflammation, and cancer.
Growing plant shoots exhibit circumnutations, namely, oscillations that draw three-dimensional trajectories, whose projections on the horizontal plane generate pendular, elliptical, or circular orbits. A large body of literature has followed the seminal work by Charles Darwin in 1880, but the nature of this phenomena is still uncertain and a long-lasting debate produced three main theories: the endogenous oscillator, the exogenous feedback oscillator, and the two-oscillator model. After briefly reviewing the three existing hypotheses, I will discuss a possible interpretation of these spontaneous oscillations as a Hopf-like bifurcation in a growing morphoelastic rod.
Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) is a fatal neurodegenerative disease primarily impacting motor neurons. Mutations in superoxide dismutase 1 (SOD1) are the second most common cause of familial ALS. Several of these mutations lead to misfolding or toxic gain of function in the SOD1 protein. Recently, we reported that misfolded SOD1 interacts with TNF receptor-associated factor 6 (TRAF6) in the SOD1-G93A rat model of ALS. Further, we showed in cultured cells that several mutant SOD1 proteins, but not wild type SOD1 protein, interact with TRAF6 via the MATH domain. Here, we sought to uncover the structural details of this interaction through molecular dynamics (MD) simulations of a dimeric model system, coarse grained using the AWSEM force field. We used direct MD simulations to identify buried residues, and predict binding poses by clustering frames from the trajectories. Metadynamics simulations were also used to deduce preferred binding regions on the protein surfaces from the potential of the mean force in orientation space. Well-folded SOD1 was found to bind TRAF6 via co-option of its native homodimer interface. However, if loops IV and VII of SOD1 were disordered, as typically occurs in the absence of stabilizing Zn2+ ion binding, these disordered loops now participated in novel interactions with TRAF6. On TRAF6, multiple interaction hot-spots were distributed around the equatorial region of the MATH domain beta barrel. Expression of TRAF6 variants with mutations in this region in cultured cells demonstrated that TRAF6 residue T475 facilitates interaction with different SOD1 mutants. These findings contribute to our understanding of the disease mechanism and uncover potential targets for the development of therapeutics.
Cytoplasmic streaming is the persistent circulation of the fluid contents of large eukaryotic cells, driven by the action of molecular motors moving along cytoskeletal filaments, entraining fluid. Discovered in 1774 by Bonaventura Corti, it is now recognized as a common phenomenon in a very broad range of model organisms, from plants to flies and worms. This talk will discuss physical approaches to understanding this phenomenon through a combination of experiments (on aquatic plants, Drosophila, and other active matter systems), theory, and computation. A particular focus will be on streaming in the Drosophilaoocyte, for which I will describe a recently discovered "swirling instability" of the microtubule cytoskeleton.
Growing plant shoots exhibit circumnutations, namely, oscillations that draw three-dimensional trajectories, whose projections on the horizontal plane generate pendular, elliptical, or circular orbits. A large body of literature has followed the seminal work by Charles Darwin in 1880, but the nature of this phenomena is still uncertain and a long-lasting debate produced three main theories: the endogenous oscillator, the exogenous feedback oscillator, and the two-oscillator model. After briefly reviewing the three existing hypotheses, I will discuss a possible interpretation of these spontaneous oscillations as a Hopf-like bifurcation in a growing morphoelastic rod.