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Sun Lee

Publications and source records attributed to Sun Lee.

7 recordsLinked to original sources

Pattern formation in a Reaction-Diffusion Model for Amyloid-$\beta$ and Tau Interactions in Alzheimer's Disease

Alzheimer's disease (AD) is characterized by the accumulation of Amyloid-$\beta$ ($A\beta$) plaques and hyperphosphorylated Tau proteins. However, many individuals exhibit substantial $A\beta$ and Tau pathology without developing dementia, suggesting that disease progression may depend not only on pathological burden but also on the spatial organization of these proteins. Motivated by this observation, we adapt Gray-Scott reaction-diffusion model to investigate pattern formation arising from the interactions between $A\beta$ and Tau. % To systematically identify stable spatial configurations, we employ a Companion-Based Multi-Level Finite Element Method (CBMFEM) on both two-dimensional domains and anatomically realistic cortical surface meshes. Numerical simulations reveal a rich landscape of multiple steady-state solutions, which are subsequently classified into representative pattern phenotypes using principal component analysis and clustering techniques. The results demonstrate that the coupled $A\beta$--Tau system admits numerous stable spatial patterns rather than a single pathological endpoint. % These findings provide a potential mathematical framework for understanding the heterogeneity of Alzheimer's disease and the existence of cognitively resilient individuals despite significant pathological burden. More broadly, the proposed framework suggests a pattern-based therapeutic paradigm in which disease dynamics are guided toward favorable stable states rather than solely targeting the elimination of pathological proteins.

q-bio.QM

Numerical Identification of Stationary States and Their Stability in a Model of Quantum Droplets

In this work, we are motivated by a recent variant of the nonlinear Schrodinger (NLS) equation describing cold, dilute atomic condensates with quantum fluctuation effects. Our goal is to develop robust numerical methods capable of uncovering diverse stationary solutions in such NLS models. Specifically, and in line with recent theoretical and experimental interest, we focus on ultracold quantum droplets in Bose mixtures influenced by the Lee Huang Yang quantum fluctuation correction and study these systems in one and two dimensional settings. To this end, we deploy several numerical techniques. The homotopy grid method allows systematic refinement from coarse to fine spatial discretizations in one dimension, while the dimension by dimension homotopy approach extends one-dimensional solutions to two-dimensional domains. These methods effectively detect broad families of stationary states, many of which have not been previously reported, to the best of our knowledge. Furthermore, they enable the monitoring of solution continuation and bifurcation phenomena. During our investigation, we encounter unusual bifurcation events, including nonstandard pitchforks and saddle-center bifurcations, which exhibit novel stability transitions. For example, we identify continuous pathways connecting vortex and dark soliton stripe branches, absent in the standard cubic defocusing model. Overall, the presence of competing mean-field and quantum fluctuation interactions leads to a richer bifurcation structure than in traditional cubic NLS systems. These findings suggest that similar complex bifurcation and stability phenomena may appear in other settings, including higher-dimensional systems or models with competing nonlinearities such as cubic-quintic interactions, highlighting the importance of further theoretical and numerical exploration.

nlin.PS

Energy Approach from $\varepsilon$-Graph to Continuum Diffusion Model with Connectivity Functional

We derive an energy-based continuum limit for $\varepsilon$-graphs endowed with a general connectivity functional. We prove that the discrete energy and its continuum counterpart differ by at most $O(\varepsilon)$; the prefactor involves only the $W^{1,1}$-norm of the connectivity density as $\varepsilon\to0$, so the error bound remains valid even when that density has strong local fluctuations. As an application, we introduce a neural-network procedure that reconstructs the connectivity density from edge-weight data and then embeds the resulting continuum model into a brain-dynamics framework. In this setting, the usual constant diffusion coefficient is replaced by the spatially varying coefficient produced by the learned density, yielding dynamics that differ significantly from those obtained with conventional constant-diffusion models.

math.NA

Optimal Control For Anti-Abeta Treatment in Alzheimer's Disease using a Reaction-Diffusion Model

Alzheimer's disease (AD) is a progressive neurodegenerative disorder that severely impairs survival and quality of life. While anti-amyloid beta (Abeta) therapies can slow disease progression, their efficacy depends on personalized dosing that maximizes benefits and minimizes risks such as amyloid related imaging abnormalities (ARIA). Mathematical modeling offers a powerful tool for understanding AD dynamics and optimizing treatment, yet most models focus solely on temporal behavior, overlooking spatial heterogeneity within the brain. In this study, we propose a spatially explicit reaction-diffusion model to describe Abeta plaque dynamics. We formulate an optimal control problem to minimize plaque concentration while balancing therapeutic efficacy and treatment risk. Under reasonable assumptions, we establish well-posedness and uniqueness of the optimal solution. A Finite Element Method (FEM) based numerical framework is developed to compute personalized treatment strategies. Our model is calibrated using longitudinal Abeta positron emission tomography (PET) data from the Alzheimer's Disease Neuroimaging Initiative (ADNI), enabling estimation of patient-specific parameters such as growth rate and effective diffusivity. Results show that optimized treatment strategies consistently outperform constant dosing regimens across patient groups, achieving substantial reductions in cumulative amyloid burden while minimizing side effects. This integrated, data-driven framework advances personalized, spatially informed therapeutic optimization for Alzheimer's disease.

math.OC

An Efficient Quasi-Newton Method with Tensor Product Implementation for Solving Quasi-Linear Elliptic Equations and Systems

In this paper, we introduce a quasi-Newton method optimized for efficiently solving quasi-linear elliptic equations and systems, with a specific focus on GPU-based computation. By approximating the Jacobian matrix with a combination of linear Laplacian and simplified nonlinear terms, our method reduces the computational overhead typical of traditional Newton methods while handling the large, sparse matrices generated from discretized PDEs. We also provide a convergence analysis demonstrating local convergence to the exact solution under optimal choices for the regularization parameter, ensuring stability and efficiency in each iteration. Numerical experiments in two- and three-dimensional domains validate the proposed method's robustness and computational gains with tensor-product implementation. This approach offers a promising pathway for accelerating quasi-linear elliptic equation and system solvers, expanding the feasibility of complex simulations in physics, engineering, and other fields leveraging advanced hardware capabilities.

math.NA

Stability and Robustness of Time-discretization Schemes for the Allen-Cahn Equation via Bifurcation and Perturbation Analysis

The Allen-Cahn equation is a fundamental model for phase transitions, offering critical insights into the dynamics of interface evolution in various physical systems. This paper investigates the stability and robustness of frequently utilized time-discretization numerical schemes for solving the Allen-Cahn equation, with focuses on the Backward Euler, Crank-Nicolson (CN), convex splitting of modified CN, and Diagonally Implicit Runge-Kutta (DIRK) methods. Our stability analysis reveals that the Convex Splitting of the Modified CN scheme exhibits unconditional stability, allowing greater flexibility in time step selection, while the other schemes are conditionally stable. Additionally, our robustness analysis highlights that the Backward Euler method converges to correct physical solutions regardless of initial conditions. In contrast, the other methods studied in this work show sensitivity to initial conditions and may converge to incorrect physical solutions if the initial conditions are not carefully chosen. This study introduces a comprehensive approach to assessing stability and robustness in numerical methods for solving the Allen-Cahn equation, providing a new perspective for evaluating numerical techniques for general nonlinear differential equations.

math.NA

Companion-Based Multi-Level Finite Element Method for Computing Multiple Solutions of Nonlinear Differential Equations

The use of nonlinear PDEs has led to significant advancements in various fields, such as physics, biology, ecology, and quantum mechanics. However, finding multiple solutions for nonlinear PDEs can be a challenging task, especially when suitable initial guesses are difficult to obtain. In this paper, we introduce a novel approach called the Companion-Based Multilevel finite element method (CBMFEM), which can efficiently and accurately generate multiple initial guesses for solving nonlinear elliptic semi-linear equations with polynomial nonlinear terms using finite element methods with conforming elements. We provide a theoretical analysis of the error estimate of finite element methods using an appropriate notion of isolated solutions, for the nonlinear elliptic equation with multiple solutions and present numerical results obtained using CBMFEM which are consistent with the theoretical analysis.

math.NA