Qualitative Modelling of Genetic Networks: From Logical Regulatory Graphs to Standard Petri Nets

In this paper, a systematic rewriting of logical genetic regulatory graphs in terms of standard Petri net models is proposed. We show that, in the Boolean case, the combination of the logical approach with the standard Petri net framework enables the analysis of isolated regulatory circuits, confirming their most fundamental dynamical properties. Furthermore, two more realistic applications are also presented, the first dealing with the control of the early cell cycles in the developing fly, the second dealing with flower morphogenesis.

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