Biological Systems: Nonlinear Dynamics Approach

Book excerpt: This book collects recent advances in the field of nonlinear dynamics in biological systems. Focusing on medical applications as well as more fundamental questions in biochemistry, it presents recent findings in areas such as control in chemically driven reaction-diffusion systems, electrical wave propagation through heart tissue, neural network growth, chiral symmetry breaking in polymers and mechanochemical pattern formation in the cytoplasm, particularly in the context of cardiac cells. It is a compilation of works, including contributions from international scientists who attended the “2nd BCAM Workshop on Nonlinear Dynamics in Biological Systems,” held at the Basque Center for Applied Mathematics, Bilbao in September 2016. Embracing diverse disciplines and using multidisciplinary approaches – including theoretical concepts, simulations and experiments – these contributions highlight the nonlinear nature of biological systems in order to be able to reproduce their complex behavior. Edited by the conference organizers and featuring results that represent recent findings and not necessarily those presented at the conference, the book appeals to applied mathematicians, biophysicists and computational biologists.