Hybrid, Multiscale Monte Carlo Algorithm for Simulating Stochastic Systems

INTRODUCTION Accurately relating the physiological outcome of a cell to the molecular events, based on an in silico analysis of intracellular networks, requires not only a precise knowledge of the network, but also an appropriate simulation technique. Traditionally, the methods used to temporally evolve intracellular networks have been deterministic in nature. However, deterministic methods cannot account for the microscopic randomness stemming from the low population of some species in intracellular environments. Hence, in situations where intracellular noise is critical to the functional behavior of the cell, deterministic solvers fare poorly. Exact stochastic solvers like the stochastic simulation algorithm (SSA)