Computer simulations of cell-target encounter including biased cell motion toward targets: Single and multiple cell-target simulations in two dimensions (Q803074)

In order for immune cells to carry out many of their functions, including clearance of infectious agents from tissue, they must first encounter their targets in the tissue. This encounter process is often the rate- limiting step in the overall function. Most immune cells exhibit chemotactic ability, and previous continuum models for encounter rates and dynamics have shown that chemotaxis can be a great advantage to cells by greatly increasing encounter rates relative to those for randomly moving cells. This paper describes computer simulations of discrete cell-target encounter events in two dimensions, for the two cases considered by the continuum models: where only a single cell and a single target are present, and where many cells and targets are present. To the best of our knowledge, this work provides the first computer simulations of particle- target encounter in which there is biased motion of particles toward their targets, and is therefore of general interest beyond specific application to immune cell function.