Theoretical Basis for the Measurement of Small Differences in the Length of the Cell Cycle between Two Cell Populations

Abstract

The length of the cell cycle (T_C) is a tight regulated process and is important for proper development and homeostasis. Although several methods are available for estimating the duration of the cell cycle, it is difficult to determinate small differences of T_C between two different cell populations due to biological and/or experimental variability. A novel strategy based in co-cultivation of two cell strains followed by a series of dilution and propagation of the culture will allow the quantification of very small differences in the length of two cell populations at resolution levels not possible at present with current methods. This is achieved by a separation of the endpoint variable measured to compare between two cell populations. The theoretical basis of this approach is discussed in the context of published experimental data and simulation of idealized experiments using virtual strains of different cell cycle length.