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Lookup NU author(s): Dr Jason Steggles
Multi-valued networks provide a simple yet expressive qualitative state based modelling approach for biological systems. In this paper we develop an abstraction theory for asynchronous multi-valued network models that allows the state space of a model to be reduced while preserving key properties of the model. The abstraction theory therefore provides a mechanism for coping with the state space explosion problem and supports the analysis and comparison of multi-valued networks. We take as our starting point the abstraction theory for synchronous multi-valued networks which is based on the finite set of traces that represent the behaviour of such a model. The problem with extending this approach to the asynchronous case is that we can now have an infinite set of traces associated with a model making a simple trace inclusion test infeasible. To address this we develop a decision procedure for checking asynchronous abstractions based on using the finite state graph of an asynchronous multi-valued network to reason about its trace semantics. We illustrate the abstraction techniques developed by considering a detailed case study based on a multi-valued network model of the regulation of tryptophan biosynthesis in Escherichia coli.
Author(s): Steggles LJ
Publication type: Report
Publication status: Published
Series Title: School of Computing Science Technical Report Series
Year: 2011
Pages: 21
Print publication date: 01/08/2011
Source Publication Date: August 2011
Report Number: 1269
Institution: School of Computing Science, University of Newcastle upon Tyne
Place Published: Newcastle upon Tyne
URL: http://www.cs.ncl.ac.uk/publications/trs/papers/1269.pdf
