2021/04/07 by Qixuan Wang, Hao Wu, Wang, Qixuan +1
Biochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology · Engineering · Physics and Astronomy · #Cellular Mechanics and Interactions #FOS: Biological sciences #Micro and Nano Robotics #Slime Mold and Myxomycetes Research #Tissues and Organs (q-bio.TO)
paper · pdf · doi:10.48550/arxiv.2104.09427
openalex publication_date 2021/04/07 · openalex created_date 2025/10/10 · openalex updated_date 2026/07/28
Cells and microorganisms adopt various strategies to migrate in response to different environmental stimuli. To date, many modeling research has focused on the crawling-based Dictyostelium discoideum (Dd) cells migration induced by chemotaxis, yet recent experimental results reveal that even without adhesion or contact to a substrate, Dd cells can still swim to follow chemoattractant signals. In this paper, we develop a modeling framework to investigate the chemotaxis induced amoeboid cell swimming dynamics. A minimal swimming system consists of one deformable Dd amoeboid cell and a dilute suspension of bacteria, and the bacteria produce chemoattractant signals that attract the Dd cell. We use the mathematical amoeba model to generate Dd cell deformation and solve the resulting low Reynolds number flows, and use a moving mesh based finite volume method to solve the reaction-diffusion-convection equation. Using the computational model, we show that chemotaxis guides a swimming Dd cell to follow and catch bacteria, while on the other hand, bacterial rheotaxis may help the bacteria to escape from the predator Dd cell.