Bridging from single to collective cell migration: A review of models and links to experiments

by Andreas Buttenschön, Leah Edelstein-Keshet

Mathematical and computational models can assist in gaining an understanding of cell behavior at many levels of organization. Here, we review models in the literature that focus on eukaryotic cell motility at 3 size scales: intracellular signaling that regulates cell shape and movement, single cell motility, and collective cell behavior from a few cells to tissues. We survey recent literature to summarize distinct computational methods (phase-field, polygonal, Cellular Potts, and spherical cells). We discuss models that bridge between levels of organization, and describe levels of detail, both biochemical and geometric, included in the models. We also highlight links between models and experiments. We find that models that span the 3 levels are still in the minority.