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A single reaction-diffusion equation for the multifarious eruptions of urticaria.

Authors :
Seirin-Lee S
Yanase Y
Takahagi S
Hide M
Source :
PLoS computational biology [PLoS Comput Biol] 2020 Jan 15; Vol. 16 (1), pp. e1007590. Date of Electronic Publication: 2020 Jan 15 (Print Publication: 2020).
Publication Year :
2020

Abstract

Urticaria is a common skin disorder characterized by the rapid appearance and disappearance of local skin edema and flares with itching. It is characterized by various macroscopic skin eruptions unique to patients and/or subtypes of urticaria with respect to shape, size, color, and/or duration of eruptions. Nevertheless, the mechanism underlying multifarious eruptions in urticaria is largely unknown. The eruptions are believed to be evoked by histamine release from mast cells in the skin. However, the majority of visible characteristics of urticaria cannot be explained by a simple injection of histamine to the skin. To explain the multifarious eruptions of urticaria, we developed a single reaction-diffusion model suggesting the self-activation and self-inhibition regulation of histamine release from mast cells. Using the model, we found that various geometrical shapes of eruptions typically observed in patients can be explained by the model parameters and randomness or strength of the initial stimuli to mast cells. Furthermore, we verified that the wheal-expanding speed of urticaria, which is shown to be much smaller than that of the intradermal injection experimental system may be explained by our model and a simple diffusion equation. Our study suggests that the simple reaction-diffusion dynamics, including the independent self-activating and -inhibitory regulation of histamine release, may account for the essential mechanism underlying the formation of multifarious eruptions in urticaria.<br />Competing Interests: The authors have declared that no competing interests exist.

Details

Language :
English
ISSN :
1553-7358
Volume :
16
Issue :
1
Database :
MEDLINE
Journal :
PLoS computational biology
Publication Type :
Academic Journal
Accession number :
31940345
Full Text :
https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pcbi.1007590