MiStImm: an agent-based simulation tool to study the self-nonself discrimination of the adaptive immune response

Table 1 Associated events and behaviors of the simulated components (“agent types”) in MiStImm program

Agent type	Simulation event or behavior	Model
Self cell pop.	Born	ERS/CRS
Foreign antigen pop.	Born	ERS/CRS
Bone marrow cell pop.	Born	ERS/CRS
	Creates a native B cell	ERS/CRS
	Creates a T helper cell	ERS/CRS
B cell (individual)	Born at the periphery by division	ERS/CRS
	Negative selection in the bone marrow	ERS/CRS
	Dies because its lifespan terminates	ERS/CRS
	Emits some danger signals	ERS
	Activation control process	ERS
	Action*:	ERS/CRS
	- detection/killing/antigen presentation	ERS/CRS
	- division of weak kind	ERS
	- division of intermediate kind	ERS
	- division of strong kind	ERS/CRS
	A plasma cell creates some antibodies	ERS/CRS
Th cell (individual)	Born at the periphery	ERS/CRS
	Dies because its lifespan terminates	ERS/CRS
	Positive and negative selection in the thymus	ERS/CRS
	Emits some interleukin	ERS
	Activation control process	ERS
	Action*:	ERS/CRS
	- detection	ERS/CRS
	- division of weak kind	ERS
	- division of intermediate kind	ERS
	- division of strong kind	ERS/CRS
Danger signal pop.	Some danger signals die	ERS
	Action*	ERS
Interleukin pop.	Some interleukins die	ERS
	Action*	ERS
Antibody pop.	An amount of antibodies dies	ERS/CRS
	An amount of antibodies acts (kill)*	ERS/CRS

B and Th cells are handled individually while the remaining types of agents are handled as population (“pop”.). Each row in the table describes a scheduled event of the simulation except the subprocesses of the Action events. These subprocesses can occur along an Action event. Interactions among agents can also occur as an implication of the five action events (signed with an asterisk*). Some simulation events and subprocess are elements of both the ERS and the CRS model, others are elements only the ERS model. A plasma cell is a special kind of B cells, a result of a B cell maturity process. A plasma cell has neither a B cell action event nor a B cell activation control event. On the other hand, it has an antibody birth and an antibody death event. An antibody has the same shape in the antigen lattice as the BCR of its mother plasma cell

ISSN: 1742-4682