Pattern formation in reaction-diffusion systems with piecewise kinetic modulation: An example study of heterogeneous kinetics

The effect of landscape fragmentation on Turing-pattern formation

Diffusion-driven instability and Turing pattern formation are a well-known mechanism by which the local interaction of species, combined with random spatial movement, can generate stable patterns of population densities in the absence of spatial heterogeneity of the underlying medium. Some examples of such patterns exist in ecological interactions between predator and prey, but the conditions required for these patterns are not easily satisfied in ecological systems. At the same time, most ecological systems exist in heterogeneous landscapes, and landscape heterogeneity can affect species interactions and individual movement behavior. In this work, we explore whether and how landscape heterogeneity might facilitate Turing pattern formation in predator-prey interactions. We formulate reaction-diffusion equations for two interacting species on an infinite patchy landscape, consisting of two types of periodically alternating patches. Population dynamics and movement behavior differ between patch types, and individuals may have a preference for one of the two habitat types. We apply homogenization theory to derive an appropriately averaged model, to which we apply stability analysis for Turing patterns. We then study three scenarios in detail and find mechanisms by which diffusion-driven instabilities may arise even if the local interaction and movement rates do not indicate it.

Pattern formation from spatially heterogeneous reaction-diffusion systems

First proposed by Turing in 1952, the eponymous Turing instability and Turing pattern remain key tools for the modern study of diffusion-driven pattern formation. In spatially homogeneous Turing systems, one or a few linear Turing modes dominate, resulting in organized patterns (peaks in one dimension; spots, stripes, labyrinths in two dimensions) which repeats in space. For a variety of reasons, there has been increasing interest in understanding irregular patterns, with spatial heterogeneity in the underlying reaction-diffusion system identified as one route to obtaining irregular patterns. We study pattern formation from reaction-diffusion systems which involve spatial heterogeneity, by way of both analytical and numerical techniques. We first extend the classical Turing instability analysis to track the evolution of linear Turing modes and the nascent pattern, resulting in a more general instability criterion which can be applied to spatially heterogeneous systems. We also calculate nonlinear mode coefficients, employing these to understand how each spatial mode influences the long-time evolution of a pattern. Unlike for the standard spatially homogeneous Turing systems, spatially heterogeneous systems may involve many Turing modes of different wavelengths interacting simultaneously, with resulting patterns exhibiting a high degree of variation over space. We provide a number of examples of spatial heterogeneity in reaction-diffusion systems, both mathematical (space-varying diffusion parameters and reaction kinetics, mixed boundary conditions, space-varying base states) and physical (curved anisotropic domains, apical growth of space domains, chemicalsimmersed within a flow or a thermal gradient), providing a qualitative understanding of how spatial heterogeneity can be used to modify classical Turing patterns. This article is part of the theme issue 'Recent progress and open frontiers in Turing's theory of morphogenesis'.

Modern perspectives on near-equilibrium analysis of Turing systems

In the nearly seven decades since the publication of Alan Turing's work on morphogenesis, enormous progress has been made in understanding both the mathematical and biological aspects of his proposed reaction-diffusion theory. Some of these developments were nascent in Turing's paper, and others have been due to new insights from modern mathematical techniques, advances in numerical simulations and extensive biological experiments. Despite such progress, there are still important gaps between theory and experiment, with many examples of biological patterning where the underlying mechanisms are still unclear. Here, we review modern developments in the mathematical theory pioneered by Turing, showing how his approach has been generalized to a range of settings beyond the classical two-species reaction-diffusion framework, including evolving and complex manifolds, systems heterogeneous in space and time, and more general reaction-transport equations. While substantial progress has been made in understanding these more complicated models, there are many remaining challenges that we highlight throughout. We focus on the mathematical theory, and in particular linear stability analysis of 'trivial' base states. We emphasize important open questions in developing this theory further, and discuss obstacles in using these techniques to understand biological reality. This article is part of the theme issue 'Recent progress and open frontiers in Turing's theory of morphogenesis'.

Isolating Patterns in Open Reaction-Diffusion Systems

Realistic examples of reaction-diffusion phenomena governing spatial and spatiotemporal pattern formation are rarely isolated systems, either chemically or thermodynamically. However, even formulations of 'open' reaction-diffusion systems often neglect the role of domain boundaries. Most idealizations of closed reaction-diffusion systems employ no-flux boundary conditions, and often patterns will form up to, or along, these boundaries. Motivated by boundaries of patterning fields related to the emergence of spatial form in embryonic development, we propose a set of mixed boundary conditions for a two-species reaction-diffusion system which forms inhomogeneous solutions away from the boundary of the domain for a variety of different reaction kinetics, with a prescribed uniform state near the boundary. We show that these boundary conditions can be derived from a larger heterogeneous field, indicating that these conditions can arise naturally if cell signalling or other properties of the medium vary in space. We explain the basic mechanisms behind this pattern localization and demonstrate that it can capture a large range of localized patterning in one, two, and three dimensions and that this framework can be applied to systems involving more than two species. Furthermore, the boundary conditions proposed lead to more symmetrical patterns on the interior of the domain and plausibly capture more realistic boundaries in developmental systems. Finally, we show that these isolated patterns are more robust to fluctuations in initial conditions and that they allow intriguing possibilities of pattern selection via geometry, distinct from known selection mechanisms.

A theory of pattern formation for reaction–diffusion systems on temporal networks

Networks have become ubiquitous in the modern scientific literature, with recent work directed at understanding ‘temporal networks’—those networks having structure or topology which evolves over time. One area of active interest is pattern formation from reaction–diffusion systems, which themselves evolve over temporal networks. We derive analytical conditions for the onset of diffusive spatial and spatio-temporal pattern formation on undirected temporal networks through the Turing and Benjamin–Feir mechanisms, with the resulting pattern selection process depending strongly on the evolution of both global diffusion rates and the local structure of the underlying network. Both instability criteria are then extended to the case where the reaction–diffusion system is non-autonomous, which allows us to study pattern formation from time-varying base states. The theory we present is illustrated through a variety of numerical simulations which highlight the role of the time evolution of network topology, diffusion mechanisms and non-autonomous reaction kinetics on pattern formation or suppression. A fundamental finding is that Turing and Benjamin–Feir instabilities are generically transient rather than eternal, with dynamics on temporal networks able to transition between distinct patterns or spatio-temporal states. One may exploit this feature to generate new patterns, or even suppress undesirable patterns, over a given time interval.

Bespoke Turing Systems

Reaction-diffusion systems are an intensively studied form of partial differential equation, frequently used to produce spatially heterogeneous patterned states from homogeneous symmetry breaking via the Turing instability. Although there are many prototypical "Turing systems" available, determining their parameters, functional forms, and general appropriateness for a given application is often difficult. Here, we consider the reverse problem. Namely, suppose we know the parameter region associated with the reaction kinetics in which patterning is required-we present a constructive framework for identifying systems that will exhibit the Turing instability within this region, whilst in addition often allowing selection of desired patterning features, such as spots, or stripes. In particular, we show how to build a system of two populations governed by polynomial morphogen kinetics such that the: patterning parameter domain (in any spatial dimension), morphogen phases (in any spatial dimension), and even type of resulting pattern (in up to two spatial dimensions) can all be determined. Finally, by employing spatial and temporal heterogeneity, we demonstrate that mixed mode patterns (spots, stripes, and complex prepatterns) are also possible, allowing one to build arbitrarily complicated patterning landscapes. Such a framework can be employed pedagogically, or in a variety of contemporary applications in designing synthetic chemical and biological patterning systems. We also discuss the implications that this freedom of design has on using reaction-diffusion systems in biological modelling and suggest that stronger constraints are needed when linking theory and experiment, as many simple patterns can be easily generated given freedom to choose reaction kinetics.

Landscape-induced spatial oscillations in population dynamics

We study the effect that disturbances in the ecological landscape exert on the spatial distribution of a population that evolves according to the nonlocal FKPP equation. Using both numerical and analytical techniques, we characterize, as a function of the interaction kernel, the three types of stationary profiles that can develop near abrupt spatial variations in the environmental conditions vital for population growth: sustained oscillations, decaying oscillations and exponential relaxation towards a flat profile. Through the mapping between the features of the induced wrinkles and the shape of the interaction kernel, we discuss how heterogeneities can reveal information that would be hidden in a flat landscape.

Turing Patterning in Stratified Domains

Reaction-diffusion processes across layered media arise in several scientific domains such as pattern-forming E. coli on agar substrates, epidermal-mesenchymal coupling in development, and symmetry-breaking in cell polarization. We develop a modeling framework for bilayer reaction-diffusion systems and relate it to a range of existing models. We derive conditions for diffusion-driven instability of a spatially homogeneous equilibrium analogous to the classical conditions for a Turing instability in the simplest nontrivial setting where one domain has a standard reaction-diffusion system, and the other permits only diffusion. Due to the transverse coupling between these two regions, standard techniques for computing eigenfunctions of the Laplacian cannot be applied, and so we propose an alternative method to compute the dispersion relation directly. We compare instability conditions with full numerical simulations to demonstrate impacts of the geometry and coupling parameters on patterning, and explore various experimentally relevant asymptotic regimes. In the regime where the first domain is suitably thin, we recover a simple modulation of the standard Turing conditions, and find that often the broad impact of the diffusion-only domain is to reduce the ability of the system to form patterns. We also demonstrate complex impacts of this coupling on pattern formation. For instance, we exhibit non-monotonicity of pattern-forming instabilities with respect to geometric and coupling parameters, and highlight an instability from a nontrivial interaction between kinetics in one domain and diffusion in the other. These results are valuable for informing design choices in applications such as synthetic engineering of Turing patterns, but also for understanding the role of stratified media in modulating pattern-forming processes in developmental biology and beyond.

Influence of temperature on Turing pattern formation

The Turing instability is one of the most commonly studied mechanisms leading to pattern formation in reaction–diffusion systems, yet there are still many open questions on the applicability of the Turing mechanism. Although experiments on pattern formation using chemical systems have shown that temperature differences play a role in pattern formation, there is far less theoretical work concerning the interplay between temperature and spatial instabilities. We consider a thermodynamically extended reaction–diffusion system, consisting of a pair of reaction–diffusion equations coupled to an energy equation for temperature, and use this to obtain a natural extension of the Turing instability accounting for temperature. We show that thermal contributions can restrict or enlarge the set of unstable modes possible under the instability, and in some cases may be used to completely shift the set of unstable modes, strongly modifying emergent Turing patterns. Spatial heterogeneity plays a role under several experimentally feasible configurations, and we give particular consideration to scenarios involving thermal gradients, thermodynamics of chemicals transported within a flow, and thermodiffusion. Control of Turing patterns is also an area of active interest, and we also demonstrate how patterns can be modified using time-dependent control of the boundary temperature.

Linking genotype, cell behavior, and phenotype: multidisciplinary perspectives with a basis in zebrafish patterns

Zebrafish are characterized by dark and light stripes, but mutants display a rich variety of altered patterns. These patterns arise from the interactions of brightly colored pigment cells, making zebrafish a self-organization problem. The diversity of patterns present in zebrafish and other emerging fish models provides an excellent system for elucidating how genes, cell behavior, and visible animal characteristics are related. With the goal of highlighting how experimental and mathematical approaches can be used to link these scales, I overview current descriptions of zebrafish patterning, describe advances in the understanding of the mechanisms underlying cell communication, and discuss new work that moves beyond zebrafish to explore patterning in evolutionary relatives.

From one pattern into another: analysis of Turing patterns in heterogeneous domains via WKBJ

Pattern formation from homogeneity is well studied, but less is known concerning symmetry-breaking instabilities in heterogeneous media. It is non-trivial to separate observed spatial patterning due to inherent spatial heterogeneity from emergent patterning due to nonlinear instability. We employ WKBJ asymptotics to investigate Turing instabilities for a spatially heterogeneous reaction-diffusion system, and derive conditions for instability which are local versions of the classical Turing conditions. We find that the structure of unstable modes differs substantially from the typical trigonometric functions seen in the spatially homogeneous setting. Modes of different growth rates are localized to different spatial regions. This localization helps explain common amplitude modulations observed in simulations of Turing systems in heterogeneous settings. We numerically demonstrate this theory, giving an illustrative example of the emergent instabilities and the striking complexity arising from spatially heterogeneous reaction-diffusion systems. Our results give insight both into systems driven by exogenous heterogeneity, as well as successive pattern forming processes, noting that most scenarios in biology do not involve symmetry breaking from homogeneity, but instead consist of sequential evolutions of heterogeneous states. The instability mechanism reported here precisely captures such evolution, and extends Turing's original thesis to a far wider and more realistic class of systems.