Driving biological insight from genome-scale and multiscale to whole-cell modeling
Journal article, 2026
Mathematical modeling is a powerful tool for gaining insights into diverse cellular processes and for guiding rational design of biological systems. A growing trend from genome-scale and multiscale to whole-cell models has emerged and these large-scale models serve as valuable knowledge platforms for the reconstruction of cellular systems across diverse biological scales, ultimately enabling comprehensive understanding of cellular systems. Here, we briefly summarize the primary principles of these models and highlight how they drive biological insights. Additionally, we discuss the respective advantages of them and outline potential opportunities represented by data and algorithms for advancing this paradigm.
Author
Yuhang Li
Shenzhen Institute of Advanced Technology
Shenzhen University of Advanced Technology
Nanjing University
Jens B Nielsen
Chalmers, Life Sciences, Systems and Synthetic Biology
BioInnovation Institute
Feiran Li
Tsinghua University
Yu Chen
Shenzhen Institute of Advanced Technology
Shenzhen University of Advanced Technology
Current Opinion in Systems Biology
24523100 (eISSN)
Vol. 45 100596Subject Categories (SSIF 2025)
Molecular Biology
Bioinformatics and Computational Biology
DOI
10.1016/j.coisb.2026.100596