Theoretical Biology of the Cell

Hiroaki Takagi is a Senior Assistant Professor of Physics at Nara Medical University, and a core member of Q-bioJP. His expertise lies in biophysics and nonlinear dynamics. He is interested in the functional significance of fluctuations and dynamics at molecular, cellular, and multicellular levels. Through analyses combining quantitative biological data and mathematical models, his research seeks to elucidate their mechanisms. Chikara Furusawa is a Professor at the University of Tokyo and a team leader at RIKEN. His research aims to uncover universal characteristics in biological systems by combining theoretical analysis with high-throughput experimental approaches. His primary areas of study include evolutionary dynamics, cell differentiation, and metabolic dynamics, among others. Satoshi Sawai is a Professor at the University of Tokyo. He has been fascinated with the slime mold Dictyostelium for more than two decades, considering it a hidden gem filled with mathematical ideas and concepts, which are covered in this book. Kunihiko Kaneko has been a Professor at the University of Tokyo for twenty-seven years, teaching mathematical biology and nonlinear dynamics, and he is currently at the Niels Bohr Institute. He was also Stanislaw Ulam Fellow at Los Alamos National Laboratory, visiting professor at Osaka University (Frontier Biosciences), University of Lyon, and Freiburg University, and is a Founding Director of Center for Complex Systems Biology and Universal Biology Institute at the University of Tokyo.

• 1. Introduction to dynamical systems for biology; 2. Input-output relationships of cell systems; 3. Oscillation and excitability in cellular dynamics; 4. Spatio-temporal pattern formation; 5. 'fluctuation' of intracellular dynamics; 6. Langevin equation and Fokker-Planck equation; 7. Dynamical system model of cell differentiation; 8. Spatiotemporal pattern produced by cells; 9. Theoretical approaches concerning the origin of life; 10. Information and biology; Notes; Index.

'The explosion of quantitative biology creates novel pedagogical challenges. Takagi et al. have delivered an exciting textbook covering standard topics in dynamical systems theory such as feedback loops in cell systems, but also more advanced topics, such as pattern formation, number fluctuations of biomolecules, and even the origin of life and the role of information in biology. This book is unique in its ability to inspire, as well as in its depth and clarity. I would enjoy teaching and learning from it and so will you!' Nigel Goldenfeld, University of California San Diego