A Cell Model About Symmetric and Asymmetric Stem Cell Division

We construct a multi-stage cell lineage model including self-renewal, apoptosis, cell movement and the symmetrical/asymmetrical division of stem cell. The cell populations can be described by coupled reaction-diffusion partial differential equations, and the propagating wavefront speeds can be obtained analytically and verified by numerical solutions of the equations. The emphasis is on the effect of symmetric/asymmetric division of stem cell on the population and propagating dynamics of cell lineage. It is found that asymmetric cell division (ACD) can move the phase boundary of homogenous solution of the system. The population of cell lineage can be promoted by ACD but not changed by symmetric division. The proportion of stem/daughter cell increase with ACD but decrease with symmetric division. In addition, it is found that the propagating speed of the stem cell can be evaluated by ACD but not affected by symmetric division. When the daughter cells move fast to a new space, stem cells can catch them up through ACD. Our results may suggest a mechanism of collective migration of cell lineage through cooperation between ACD of stem cell and fast diffusion of daughter cell