[Acmsmajors] Undergraduate Math Sciences Seminar--this week's talk

[Julie Eaton]

Date:  Thursday February 15, 2007

Time:  12:30-2 pm Denny 304

Speaker:  Joseph Hua Tien, Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center

Title:   Modeling an autocatalytic enzyme

Abstract:
Aspirin works by blocking an enzyme called COX. This enzyme possesses some 
interesting kinetic features. In particular, it is autocatalytic, meaning 
that the enzyme can activate itself. I'll discuss a simple model of this 
enzyme, analyze the model using basic techniques from dynamical systems 
and multiple scales, and interpret the results biologically. This includes 
the relevance of COX to cancer research and the pharmaceutical industry.