An autowave model of the bifurcation behavior of transformed cells in response to polysaccharide

Abstract

Isolated Helianthus tuberosus L. polysaccharide (HTLP) with a molecular weight of 1–2 MDa has a wide range of biological activities, including the ability to switch transformed cells to an apoptotic pathway. A qualitative explanation for this effect has previously been proposed on the basis of the interactions among components of intracellular signaling pathways associated with the Dectin-1, TLR-6, and TNFR1 receptors and intracellular factors involved in regulating apoptosis. In this work, an autowave model is proposed to explain the switch between alternative modes of cell behavior in response to polysaccharide. The model is based on the modified FitzHugh–Nagumo system of equations. The parameters of the model were estimated numerically.