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Kinetics of complex formation between components of the photosynthetic electron transport chain — flavodoxin and membrane complex photosystem I has been studied using computer model based on methods of multiparticle simulation and Brownian dynamics. We simulated Brownian motion of several hundreds of flavodoxin molecules, taking into account electrostatic interactions and complex shape of the molecules. Our model could describe experimental nonmonotonic dependence of the association rate constant for flavodoxin and photosystem I. This lets us conclude that electrostatic interactions are sufficient to form such kind of nonmonotonic dependence.

It is known that the internal mobility of DNA molecules plays an important role in the functioning of these molecules. This explains the great interest of researchers in studying the internal dynamics of DNA. Complexity, laboriousness and high cost of research in this field stimulate the search and creation of simpler physical analogues, convenient for simulating the various dynamic regimes possible in DNA. One of the directions of such a search is connected with the use of a mechanical analogue of DNA — a chain of coupled pendulums. In this model, pendulums imitate nitrous bases, horizontal thread on which pendulums are suspended, simulates a sugarphosphate chain, and gravitational field simulates a field induced by a second strand of DNA. Simplicity and visibility are the main advantages of the mechanical analogue. However, the model becomes too cumbersome in cases where it is necessary to simulate long (more than a thousand base pairs) DNA sequences. Another direction is associated with the use of an electronic analogue of the DNA molecule, which has no shortcomings of the mechanical model. In this paper, we investigate the possibility of using the Josephson line as an electronic analogue. We calculated the coefficients of the direct and indirect transformations for the simple case of a homogeneous, synthetic DNA, the sequence of which contains only adenines. The internal mobility of the DNA molecule was modeled by the sine-Gordon equation for angular vibrations of nitrous bases belonging to one of the two polynucleotide chains of DNA. The second polynucleotide chain was modeled as a certain average field in which these oscillations occur. We obtained the transformation, allowing the transition from DNA to an electronic analog in two ways. The first includes two stages: (1) the transition from DNA to the mechanical analogue (a chain of coupled pendulums) and (2) the transition from the mechanical analogue to the electronic one (the Josephson line). The second way is direct. It includes only one stage — a direct transition from DNA to the electronic analogue.

In this paper, we address the mathematical modeling of robots based on tensegrity structures. The pivotal property of such structures is the forming elements working only for compression or tension, which allows the use of materials and structural solutions that minimize the weight of the structure while maintaining its strength.

Tensegrity structures hold several properties important for collaborative robotics, exploration and motion tasks in non-deterministic environments: natural compliance, compactness for transportation, low weight with significant impact resistance and rigidity. The control of such structures remains an open research problem, which is associated with the complexity of describing the dynamics of such structures.

We formulate an approach for describing the dynamics of such structures, based on second-order dynamics of the Cartesian coordinates of structure elements (rods), first-order dynamics for angular velocities of rods, and first-order dynamics for quaternions that are used to describe the orientation of rods. We propose a numerical method for solving these dynamic equations. The proposed methods are implemented in the form of a freely distributed mathematical package with open source code.

Further, we show how the provided software package can be used for modeling the dynamics and determining the operating modes of tensegrity structures. We present an example of a tensegrity structure moving in zero gravity with three rigid rods and nine elastic elements working in tension (cables), showing the features of the dynamics of the structure in reaching the equilibrium position. The range of initial conditions for which the structure operates in the normal mode is determined. The results can be directly used to analyze the nature of passive dynamic movements of the robots based on a three-link tensegrity structure, considered in the paper; the proposed modeling methods and the developed software are suitable for modeling a significant variety of tensegrity robots.

The proteins of the Major Histocompatibility Complex (MHC) play a key role in the functioning of the adaptive immune system, and the identification of peptides that bind to them is an important step in the development of vaccines and understanding the mechanisms of autoimmune diseases. Today, there are a number of methods for predicting the binding of a particular MHC allele to a peptide. One of the best such methods is NetMHCpan-4.0, which is based on an ensemble of artificial neural networks. This paper presents a methodology for qualitatively improving the underlying neural network underlying NetMHCpan-4.0. The proposed method uses the ensemble construction technique and adds as input an estimate of the Potts model taken from static mechanics, which is a generalization of the Ising model. In the general case, the model reflects the interaction of spins in the crystal lattice. Within the framework of the proposed method, the model is used to better represent the physical nature of the interaction of proteins included in the complex. To assess the interaction of the MHC + peptide complex, we use a two-dimensional Potts model with 20 states (corresponding to basic amino acids). Solving the inverse problem using data on experimentally confirmed interacting pairs, we obtain the values of the parameters of the Potts model, which we then use to evaluate a new pair of MHC + peptide, and supplement this value with the input data of the neural network. This approach, combined with the ensemble construction technique, allows for improved prediction accuracy, in terms of the positive predictive value (PPV) metric, compared to the baseline model.

This article solves the problem of developing a technology for collecting initial data for building models for assessing the functional state of a person. This condition is assessed by the pupil response of a person to a change in illumination based on the pupillometry method. This method involves the collection and analysis of initial data (pupillograms), presented in the form of time series characterizing the dynamics of changes in the human pupils to a light impulse effect. The drawbacks of the traditional approach to the collection of initial data using the methods of computer vision and smoothing of time series are analyzed. Attention is focused on the importance of the quality of the initial data for the construction of adequate mathematical models. The need for manual marking of the iris and pupil circles is updated to improve the accuracy and quality of the initial data. The stages of the proposed technology for collecting initial data are described. An example of the obtained pupillogram is given, which has a smooth shape and does not contain outliers, noise, anomalies and missing values. Based on the presented technology, a software and hardware complex has been developed, which is a collection of special software with two main modules, and hardware implemented on the basis of a Raspberry Pi 4 Model B microcomputer, with peripheral equipment that implements the specified functionality. To evaluate the effectiveness of the developed technology, models of a single-layer perspetron and a collective of neural networks are used, for the construction of which the initial data on the functional state of intoxication of a person were used. The studies have shown that the use of manual marking of the initial data (in comparison with automatic methods of computer vision) leads to a decrease in the number of errors of the 1st and 2nd years of the kind and, accordingly, to an increase in the accuracy of assessing the functional state of a person. Thus, the presented technology for collecting initial data can be effectively used to build adequate models for assessing the functional state of a person by pupillary response to changes in illumination. The use of such models is relevant in solving individual problems of ensuring transport security, in particular, monitoring the functional state of drivers.

The background social strain of a society can be quantitatively estimated using various statistical indicators. Mathematical models, allowing to forecast the dynamics of social strain, are successful in describing various social processes. If the number of interacting groups is small, the dynamics of the corresponding indicators can be modelled with a system of ordinary differential equations. The increase in the number of interacting components leads to the growth of complexity, which makes the analysis of such models a challenging task. A continuous social stratification model can be considered as a result of the transition from a discrete number of interacting social groups to their continuous distribution in some finite interval. In such a model, social strain naturally spreads locally between neighbouring groups, while in reality, the social elite influences the whole society via news media, and the Internet allows non-local interaction between social groups. These factors, however, can be taken into account to some extent using the term of the model, describing negative external influence on the society. In this paper, we develop a continuous social stratification model, describing the dynamics of two societies connected through migration. We assume that people migrate from the social group of donor society with the highest strain level to poorer social layers of the acceptor society, transferring the social strain at the same time. We assume that all model parameters are constants, which is a realistic assumption for small societies only. By using the finite volume method, we construct the spatial discretization for the problem, capable of reproducing finite propagation speed of social strain. We verify the discretization by comparing the results of numerical simulations with the exact solutions of the auxiliary non-linear diffusion equation. We perform the numerical analysis of the proposed model for different values of model parameters, study the impact of migration intensity on the stability of acceptor society, and find the destabilization conditions. The results, obtained in this work, can be used in further analysis of the model in the more realistic case of inhomogeneous coefficients.

The paper considers an earlier proposed by the author discrete modification of the A. P. Mikhailov “power – society” model. The modification is based on a stochastic cellular automaton, it’s microdynamics being completely different from the c continuous model based on differential equations. However, the macrodynamics of the discrete modification is shown in previous works to be equivalent to one of the continuous model. This is important, but at the same time raises the question why use the discrete model. The answer lies in its flexibility, which allows adding a variety of factors, the consideration of which in a continuous model either leads to a significant increase in computational complexity or is simply impossible.

This paper considers several examples of such applicability expansion of the model, with the help of which a number of applied problems are solved.

One of the modifications of the model takes into account economic ties between regions and municipalities, which could not be studied in the basic model. Computational experiments confirmed the improvement of the socio-economic indicators of the system under the influence of the ties.

The second modification allows internal migration in the system. Using it we studied the socio-economic development of a more prosperous region that attracts migrants.

Next we studied the dynamics of the system while the number of regions and municipalities changes. The negative impact of this process on the socio-economic indicators of the system was shown and possible control was found to overcome this negative impact.

The results of this study, therefore, include both the solution of some applied problems and the demonstration of the broader applicability of the discrete model compared with the continuous one.

A mathematical model describing the dynamics of HIV-1 infection in a single lymph node during the initial period of infection development is presented. Within the framework of the model, the infection of an individual is set by a nonnegative finite function describing the rate of entry of the initial viral particles into the lymph node. The equations of the model are derived with consideration of two factors: 1) the interaction of viral particles with naive CD4+ T lymphocytes in various phases of the cell cycle; 2) contact interaction between multiplying naive CD4+ T lymphocytes and infected CD4+ T lymphocytes producing viral particles. The specific feature of intercellular contact interactions is the formation of complexes consisting of pairs of these cells. The duration of the complexes’ existence is determined by the distribution functions over finite time intervals. The model is presented as a high-dimensional system of nonlinear delay differential equations, including two equations with distributed delay, and is supplemented with non-negative initial data. In the absence of HIV-1 infection, the model is reduced to four delay differential equations describing the number of naive CD4+ T-lymphocytes in different phases of the cell cycle. The global solvability of the model (the existence and uniqueness of the solution on the semi-axis) is determined, and the non-negativity of the solution components is established. To carry out computational experiments with the model, an algorithm for numerically solving the used system of differential equations are developed based on the semi-implicit Euler scheme for the case of uniform distribution of durations of the complexes existence. The results of computational experiments aimed at approximation the numerical solution of the model to describing the kinetics of HIV-1 infection spread in its acute phase, including the eclipse phase, are presented. The variable used as the observable is the variable describing the number of viral particles per milliliter of blood on days 10–12 after the onset of acute infection. The dynamics of the observable variable is numerically studied depending on the variation of the model parameters reflecting the patterns of complex formation and the formation of cells producing viral particles. The possibility of attenuation of HIV-1 infection in the lymph node at certain values of some of the model parameters is shown.

The problem of ligand binding to certain receptor proteins is of central importance in cellular signaling, but it is still unresolved at a molecular level. In order to enhance our understanding of the molecular mechanisms we used a biophysical approach to study a serotonin-gated ion channel. The molecular model of 5-HT3 receptor extracellular domain was created using computer-based homology modeling. The docking method was used for building complexes of the 5-HT3 receptor and ligands. Some different activities were investigated by the method of molecular dynamics.

Flexible software for modeling polymeric film production by use of blown extrusion has been developed. It consists of library of mathematical models for extrusion and forming blown film, sub-system for changeover to new type of film and sub-system for investigation of extrusion and forming for film quality control under film production. The sub-system for changeover allows to choose the equipment of extrusion line on technical and economic indices, to synthesize 3D model of the line and to generate regulation ranges of regime parameters for given type of film. The sub-system for investigation allows to calculate temperature profiles of heating and cooling material, geometrical and optical characteristics of film depending on regime parameters for stages of extrusion and forming and to evaluate regime parameters ensuring given quality of polymeric film.