Bernhard Palsson Libri

Biophysical models have been used in biology for decades, but they have been limited in scope and size. In this book, Bernhard Ø. Palsson shows how network reconstructions that are based on genomic and bibliomic data, and take the form of established stoichiometric matrices, can be converted into dynamic models using metabolomic and fluxomic data. The Mass Action Stoichiometric Simulation (MASS) procedure can be used for any cellular process for which data is available and allows a scalable step-by-step approach to the practical construction of network models. Specifically, it can treat integrated processes that need explicit accounting of small molecules and protein, which allows simulation at the molecular level. The material has been class-tested by the author at both the undergraduate and graduate level. All computations in the text are available online in MATLAB and MATHEMATICA® workbooks, allowing hands-on practice with the material.

Genome sequences are now available that enable us to determine the biological components that make up a cell or an organism. The new discipline of systems biology examines how these components interact and form networks, and how the networks generate whole cell functions corresponding to observable phenotypes. This textbook describes how to model networks, determine their properties, and relate these to phenotypic functions. Some knowledge of linear algebra and biochemistry is required, since the book reflects the irreversible trend of increasing mathematical content in biology education.