Activation waves in a model of platelet aggregation: Existence of solutions and stability of travelling fronts (Q688469)

The authors present a reaction-diffusion model to describe the activation of platelets; this process is of great importance in the development of infarctions and strokes. The activation can be described by an interaction of a certain chemical trigger (ADP) of concentration \(c\) and the platelets of concentration \(\varphi\). A good approximation is a threshold-like response. The resulting equations are, after suitable normalization: \[ \varphi_ t= \varepsilon\varphi_{xx}- H(c- a)\cdot\varphi,\quad c_ t= c_{xx}+ H(c- a)\cdot \varphi, \] with the unit Heaviside jump \(H\) and the threshold \(a\). The authors establish the existence of classical solutions, and show that these solutions do not blow up in finite time. They also construct travelling front solutions and discuss their stability. Finally, they present numerical evidence suggesting that for a broad range of initial data the solution rapidly evolves into the travelling front solution provided the front is linearly stable.