MODELING THE CELL DIVISION CYCLE: A QUALITATIVE APPROACH

The underlying biochemical mechanisms that drive the cell division cycle involve the interactions and feedback controls between the cytoplasmic proteins cdc2 and cyclin, and the activities of the cdc2-cyclin complex MPF. Alternation between interphase and mitosis is associated with oscillatory MPF and cyclin levels. This paper describes an ordinary differential equations (ODE) model and a functional differential equations (FDE) model of the cell cycle based on experimental work with the newly fertilized frog egg. One major difference of these models from previous ones is the use of nonspecific reaction terms in describing the interactions between cdc2, cyclin and MPF. This qualitative approach makes possible the evaluation of the roles of the various reactions and feedback mechanisms in the control of the cell cycle.