Reconciling transport models across scales: The role of volume exclusion

Diffusive transport is a universal phenomenon, throughout both biological and physical sciences, and models of diffusion are routinely used to interrogate diffusion-driven processes. However, most models neglect to take into account the role of volume exclusion, which can significantly alter diffusi...

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Bibliographic Details
Published inPhysical review. E, Statistical, nonlinear, and soft matter physics Vol. 92; no. 4; p. 040701
Main Authors Taylor, P R, Yates, C A, Simpson, M J, Baker, R E
Format Journal Article
LanguageEnglish
Published United States 01.10.2015
Subjects
Diffusion
Models, Theoretical
Stochastic Processes
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Summary:Diffusive transport is a universal phenomenon, throughout both biological and physical sciences, and models of diffusion are routinely used to interrogate diffusion-driven processes. However, most models neglect to take into account the role of volume exclusion, which can significantly alter diffusive transport, particularly within biological systems where the diffusing particles might occupy a significant fraction of the available space. In this work we use a random walk approach to provide a means to reconcile models that incorporate crowding effects on different spatial scales. Our work demonstrates that coarse-grained models incorporating simplified descriptions of excluded volume can be used in many circumstances, but that care must be taken in pushing the coarse-graining process too far.
ISSN:1550-2376
DOI:10.1103/PhysRevE.92.040701