Download Interactive model and response analysis for human immunological system

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Systems immunology is a recent research field that, under the larger umbrella of systems
biology,aimstostudytheimmunesysteminthemoreintegratedperspectiveonhowentities
andplayersparticipateatdifferentsystemlevelstotheimmunefunction.
Theimmunesystemhasbeenthoroughlyanalysedasregardstoitscomponentsandfunction
by using a very successful "reductionist" approach, but its overall functioning principles
cannoteasilybepredictedbystudyingthepropertiesofitsisolatedcomponentsbecausethey
stronglyrelyonandarisefromtheinteractionsamongthesenumerousconstituents.Systems
immunology represents a different approach for the integrated comprehension of the
immunesystemstructureandfunctionbasedoncomplexsystemstheory,highthroughput
techniques,aswellasonmathematicalandcomputationaltools.
ImmunologicalNetwork
Inthisprojectwefocusonthefunctionalityofimmunologicalsystemcentredaroundcancer
treatment.Itiswellknowncancerpatients,especiallyattheirlatestage,haveverylowchance
togetcuredundertraditionaltreatmentincludingchemotherapyandradiationtherapy.Our
immunitydefencesystemisthelastresortandtheonlysolution.Unfortunately,uptodate
howourimmunesystemrespondstotumourdiseasesremainsunclearandinlargeatrial
process.
Thefirstobjectiveofthisprojectistoestablishaqualitativebehaviourmodelthatcancapture
theimmunologicalresponsessubjecttoexogenousandendogenoussubstances,bytaking
into consideration the main factors that are relevant to cancer diseases, such as relevant
cytokines like TNF, IL family, as well as the relationship between the innate and adaptive
immune responses. The second objective is to incorporate danger model and signals to
enhancethecurrentimmunenetworkwhenactivatingtheadaptiveimmuneresponse.The
third objective is to introduce a comprehensive system dynamics model that specifies the
quantitative behaviours of the immune system during responses. A commercial system
dynamicsystemsoftwareisusedtoaccommodatenumerousbiologicalmodelsdevelopedin
thefieldofsystembiologytodescribeelementaryrelationsofimmunefactors.Thedynamic
modelcanhelppredictwhatthestatusoftheimmunesystemresponsebelongsto,suchas
noneactivated,weaklyactivated,stronglyactivated,immuneexhaustion,ortolerance.Finally
clinicaldatawillbecollectedandusedtosummarisetheactivationprocessoftheinnateand
adaptiveimmuneresponses.Bothinvasiveandnoninvasivestimulatingsignals,allrelevant
symptomsandsideeffectsofcancertreatmentwillbeelaboratedandassociatedwiththe
statusoftheimmunestatusandanumberofrulescanbeexploredandconcludedtoguide
clinicalcancertreatment.