Toward a Mathematical Model of the Immune System

Mathematicians and scientists in Great Britain are going where no one has gone before: trying to create a unified mathematical model of immune-system responses. They hope that their model will serve as a common reference point and language for immunologists, mathematicians, computer scientists, physicists, and engineers.

Carmen Molína-Paris, an applied mathematician at the University of Leeds, said, "The ability to track parasites and cells in real time using novel imaging techniques is allowing exciting new insights and will help us measure the interactions between the different parts of the immune system. This will provide a theoretical and computational model of the immune system, giving a complete picture that researchers from across all disciplines can refer to and draw upon."

"Mathematical immunology is maturing into a discipline where modeling helps everyone to interpret data and resolve controversies," she added. "Most importantly, it suggests novel experiments allowing for better and more quantitative interpretations." And perhaps medical breakthroughs.

The project is called the Immunology Imaging and Modelling (I²M) Network and is funded by the Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council

Source: Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council, Oct. 9, 2007.