Figure 1.

Relationships between simulated multicellular tumor spheroids (SMS) and EMT6 spheroids. An SMS is comprised of quasi-autonomous cell components interacting with adjacent cells and factors in their environment by adhering to a set of axiomatic operating principles. A clear mapping exists between SMS components and EMT6 counterparts. Following execution, the interacting components cause local and systemic behaviors. Measures of cell and system behaviors provide a set of attributes – the SMS phenotype. Validation was achieved when SMS attributes were measurably similar to a targeted set of EMT6 attributes. When that was accomplished, we could hypothesize that a semiquantitative mapping exists between in silico and in vitro events. We could also hypothesize that the set of axiomatic operating principles has a biological counterpart.