Sensibility of the quorum growth thresholds controlling local immune responses

  • Authors:

  • N. J. Burroughs;B. M. P. M. Oliveira;A. A. Pinto;H. J. T. Sequeira

  • Affiliations:

  • Mathematics Institute, University of Warwick, Coventry CV4 7AL, UK;Faculdade de Ciências da Universidade do Porto, Portugal and Faculdade de Ciências da Nutrição e Alimentação da Universidade do Porto, Porto, Portugal;Faculdade de Ciências da Universidade do Porto, Portugal;Faculdade de Ciências da Universidade do Porto, Portugal

  • Venue:
  • Mathematical and Computer Modelling: An International Journal
  • Year:
  • 2008

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Abstract

The consequences of regulatory T cell (Treg) inhibition of interleukine 2 secretion are examined by mathematical modelling. We demonstrate that cytokine dependent growth exhibits quorum T cell population thresholds that determine whether immune responses develop on activation and whether the immune system returns to a control state. We study the effects in the quorum T cell population thresholds, by the T cell maximum growth rate, by the growth rate ratio between Tregs and T cells, by the value of the secretion rate of cytokines, and by the effectiveness of T cell secretion inhibition by Tregs.