ABSTRACT
Modelling is an attempt to describe, in a precise way, an understanding of the elements of a system of interest, their states, and their interactions with other elements. The model should be sufficiently detailed and precise so that it can in principle be used to simulate the behaviour of the system on a computer. In the context of molecular cell biology, a model may describe (some of) the mechanisms involved in transcription, translation, gene regulation, cellular signalling, DNA damage and repair processes, homeostatic processes, the cell cycle, or apoptosis. Indeed any biochemical mechanism of interest can, in principle, be modelled. At a higher level, modelling may be used to describe the functioning of a tissue, organ, or even an entire organism. At still higher levels, models can be used to describe the behaviour and time evolution of populations of individual organisms.
