arXiv subjects

Loïc Paulevé

Publications and source records attributed to Loïc Paulevé.

25 records · Page 2Linked to original sources

arXiv2018

Parameter Space Abstraction and Unfolding Semantics of Discrete Regulatory Networks

The modelling of discrete regulatory networks combines a graph specifying the pairwise influences between the variables of the system, and a parametrisation from which can be derived a discrete transition system. Given the influence graph only, the exploration of admissible parametrisations and the behaviours they enable is computationally demanding due to the combinatorial explosions of both parametrisation and reachable state space. This article introduces an abstraction of the parametrisation space and its refinement to account for the existence of given transitions, and for constraints on the sign and observability of influences. The abstraction uses a convex sublattice containing the concrete parametrisation space specified by its infimum and supremum parametrisations. It is shown that the computed abstractions are optimal, i.e., no smaller convex sublattice exists. Although the abstraction may introduce over-approximation, it has been proven to be conservative with respect to reachability of states. Then, an unfolding semantics for Parametric Regulatory Networks is defined, taking advantage of concurrency between transitions to provide a compact representation of reachable transitions. A prototype implementation is provided: it has been applied to several examples of Boolean and multi-valued networks, showing its tractability for networks with numerous components.

cs.DM↗

arXiv2016

Goal-Driven Unfolding of Petri Nets

Unfoldings provide an efficient way to avoid the state-space explosion due to interleavings of concurrent transitions when exploring the runs of a Petri net. The theory of adequate orders allows one to define finite prefixes of unfoldings which contain all the reachable markings. In this paper we are interested in reachability of a single given marking, called the goal. We propose an algorithm for computing a finite prefix of the unfolding of a 1-safe Petri net that preserves all minimal configurations reaching this goal. Our algorithm combines the unfolding technique with on-the-fly model reduction by static analysis aiming at avoiding the exploration of branches which are not needed for reaching the goal. We present some experimental results.

cs.LO↗

arXiv2016

Goal-Oriented Reduction of Automata Networks

We consider networks of finite-state machines having local transitions conditioned by the current state of other automata. In this paper, we depict a reduction procedure tailored for a given reachability property of the form ``from global state s there exists a sequence of transitions leading to a state where an automaton g is in a local state T'. By exploiting a causality analysis of the transitions within the individual automata, the proposed reduction removes local transitions while preserving all the minimal traces that satisfy the reachability property. The complexity of the procedure is polynomial in the total number of local states and transitions, and exponential in the number of local states within one automaton. Applied to automata networks modelling dynamics of biological systems, we observe that the reduction shrinks down significantly the reachable state space, enhancing the tractability of the model-checking of large networks.

cs.LO↗

arXiv2016

Relationship between the Reprogramming Determinants of Boolean Networks and their Interaction Graph

In this paper, we address the formal characterization of targets triggering cellular trans-differentiation in the scope of Boolean networks with asynchronous dynamics. Given two fixed points of a Boolean network, we are interested in all the combinations of mutations which allow to switch from one fixed point to the other, either possibly, or inevitably. In the case of existential reachability, we prove that the set of nodes to (permanently) flip are only and necessarily in certain connected components of the interaction graph. In the case of inevitable reachability, we provide an algorithm to identify a subset of possible solutions.

cs.DM↗

arXiv2013

Under-approximating Cut Sets for Reachability in Large Scale Automata Networks

In the scope of discrete finite-state models of interacting components, we present a novel algorithm for identifying sets of local states of components whose activity is necessary for the reachability of a given local state. If all the local states from such a set are disabled in the model, the concerned reachability is impossible. Those sets are referred to as cut sets and are computed from a particular abstract causality structure, so-called Graph of Local Causality, inspired from previous work and generalised here to finite automata networks. The extracted sets of local states form an under-approximation of the complete minimal cut sets of the dynamics: there may exist smaller or additional cut sets for the given reachability. Applied to qualitative models of biological systems, such cut sets provide potential therapeutic targets that are proven to prevent molecules of interest to become active, up to the correctness of the model. Our new method makes tractable the formal analysis of very large scale networks, as illustrated by the computation of cut sets within a Boolean model of biological pathways interactions gathering more than 9000 components.

eess.SY↗

arXiv2013

Dynamical Properties of Discrete Reaction Networks

Reaction networks are commonly used to model the evolution of populations of species subject to transformations following an imposed stoichiometry. This paper focuses on the efficient characterisation of dynamical properties of Discrete Reaction Networks (DRNs). DRNs can be seen as modelling the underlying discrete nondeterministic transitions of stochastic models of reactions networks. In that sense, any proof of non-reachability in DRNs directly applies to any concrete stochastic models, independently of kinetics laws and constants. Moreover, if stochastic kinetic rates never vanish, reachability properties are equivalent in the two settings. The analysis of two global dynamical properties of DRNs is addressed: irreducibility, i.e., the ability to reach any discrete state from any other state; and recurrence, i.e., the ability to return to any initial state. Our results consider both the verification of such properties when species are present in a large copy number, and in the general case. The obtained necessary and sufficient conditions involve algebraic conditions on the network reactions which in most cases can be verified using linear programming. Finally, the relationship of DRN irreducibility and recurrence with dynamical properties of stochastic and continuous models of reaction networks is discussed.

cs.DM↗

arXiv2010

Stochastic Simulation of Process Calculi for Biology

Biological systems typically involve large numbers of components with complex, highly parallel interactions and intrinsic stochasticity. To model this complexity, numerous programming languages based on process calculi have been developed, many of which are expressive enough to generate unbounded numbers of molecular species and reactions. As a result of this expressiveness, such calculi cannot rely on standard reaction-based simulation methods, which require fixed numbers of species and reactions. Rather than implementing custom stochastic simulation algorithms for each process calculus, we propose to use a generic abstract machine that can be instantiated to a range of process calculi and a range of reaction-based simulation algorithms. The abstract machine functions as a just-in-time compiler, which dynamically updates the set of possible reactions and chooses the next reaction in an iterative cycle. In this short paper we give a brief summary of the generic abstract machine, and show how it can be instantiated with the stochastic simulation algorithm known as Gillespie's Direct Method. We also discuss the wider implications of such an abstract machine, and outline how it can be used to simulate multiple calculi simultaneously within a common framework.

cs.PL↗