Microorganisms such as E. coli and algae typically adjust their motility in response to external stimuli. While their behavioral response patterns are readily measurable, the underlying internal reaction dynamics are complex and more challenging to measure directly. Here, we propose a neural network approach that uncovers the governing rules from observable stimulus-response data, enabling the revelation of potential internal signaling structures. Lei et al. 2025
Image Credit: Shicong Lei and Min Tang
Education Articles
Ten simple rules for leading a many-author non-empirical paper
PLOS Computational Biology: published August 14, 2025 | https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pcbi.1013283
Ten simple rules for being a co-author on a many-author non-empirical paper
PLOS Computational Biology: published August 14, 2025 | https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pcbi.1013317
Why and how to set up a Bioinformatics Learning Lab (BILL)
PLOS Computational Biology: published August 28, 2025 | https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pcbi.1013236
Perspective
Ten simple rules for research with humans
PLOS Computational Biology: published August 7, 2025 | https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pcbi.1013362
Research Articles
Mathematical modeling suggests 14-3-3 proteins modulate RAF paradoxical activation
PLOS Computational Biology: published August 1, 2025 | https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pcbi.1013297
Continual familiarity decoding from recurrent connections in spiking networks
PLOS Computational Biology: published August 1, 2025 | https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pcbi.1013304
SuperEdgeGO: Edge-supervised graph representation learning for enhanced protein function prediction
PLOS Computational Biology: published August 1, 2025 | https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pcbi.1013343
Integrating AlphaFold2 models and clinical data to improve the assessment of Short Linear Motifs (SLiMs) and their variants’ pathogenicity
PLOS Computational Biology: published August 4, 2025 | https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pcbi.1012829
Nonparametric serial interval estimation with uniform mixtures
PLOS Computational Biology: published August 4, 2025 | https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pcbi.1013338
Emergence of cooperation promoted by higher-order strategy updates
PLOS Computational Biology: published August 4, 2025 | https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pcbi.1012891
Socioeconomic determinants of protective behaviors and contact patterns in the post-COVID-19 pandemic era: A cross-sectional study in Italy
PLOS Computational Biology: published August 4, 2025 | https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pcbi.1013262
Mutations in tumor signaling, metastases, and synthetic lethality establish distinct patterns
PLOS Computational Biology: published August 4, 2025 | https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pcbi.1013351
Identification of the governing equation of stimulus-response data for run-and-tumble dynamics
PLOS Computational Biology: published August 5, 2025 | https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pcbi.1013287
Modelling the potential use of pre-exposure prophylaxis to reduce nosocomial SARS-CoV-2 transmission
PLOS Computational Biology: published August 5, 2025 | https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pcbi.1013361
Excitatory/inhibitory ratio disruption modulates neural synchrony and flow directions in a cortical microcircuit
PLOS Computational Biology: published August 6, 2025 | https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pcbi.1013306
Multi-context modeling of driver pathways reveals common and specific mechanisms across 23 cancer types
PLOS Computational Biology: published August 6, 2025 | https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pcbi.1013349
Machine learning on multiple epigenetic features reveals H3K27Ac as a driver of gene expression prediction across patients with glioblastoma
PLOS Computational Biology: published August 7, 2025 | https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pcbi.1012272
Optimal control of multiple myeloma assuming drug resistance and off-target effects
PLOS Computational Biology: published August 11, 2025 | https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pcbi.1012225
Barking up the right tree: Immune checkpoint signatures of human and dog cancers
PLOS Computational Biology: published August 11, 2025 | https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pcbi.1013270
Visuoinertial and visual feedback in online steering control
PLOS Computational Biology: published August 11, 2025 | https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pcbi.1012659
A hierarchical multiscale model of forward and backward alpha-band traveling waves in the visual system
PLOS Computational Biology: published August 11, 2025 | https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pcbi.1013294
Comparing the effectiveness of ring and block-vaccination strategies on networks
PLOS Computational Biology: published August 11, 2025 | https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pcbi.1013274
Cryo-EM ligand building using AlphaFold3-like model and molecular dynamics
PLOS Computational Biology: published August 11, 2025 | https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pcbi.1013367
A model of anaerobic tissue perfusion during trauma—Lactate trajectory curvature can determine recovery
PLOS Computational Biology: published August 11, 2025 | https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pcbi.1012820
Emergence of a complex network structure on a Spatial Prisoner’s Dilemma
PLOS Computational Biology: published August 12, 2025 | https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pcbi.1013329
Near-random connections support top-down feature-based attentional modulations in early sensory cortex
PLOS Computational Biology: published August 12, 2025 | https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pcbi.1013396
An empirical model of aminoacylation kinetics for E. coli class I and II aminoacyl tRNA synthetases
PLOS Computational Biology: published August 12, 2025 | https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pcbi.1013353
The role of feedforward and feedback inhibition in modulating theta-gamma cross-frequency interactions in neural circuits
PLOS Computational Biology: published August 13, 2025 | https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pcbi.1013363
Risk factors for fluoroquinolone- and macrolide-resistance among swine Campylobacter coli using multi-layered chain graphs
PLOS Computational Biology: published August 13, 2025 | https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pcbi.1012797
Does Zipf’s law of abbreviation shape birdsong?
PLOS Computational Biology: published August 13, 2025 | https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pcbi.1013228
Mechanistic modeling suggests stroma-targeting antibody-drug conjugates as an alternative to cancer-targeting in cases of heterogeneous target exspression
PLOS Computational Biology: published August 13, 2025 | https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pcbi.1012839
Constructing the first comorbidity networks in companion dogs in the Dog Aging Project
PLOS Computational Biology: published August 14, 2025 | https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pcbi.1012728
Temporal evolution of hemodynamics in murine arteriovenous fistula: A micro-CT based CFD study
PLOS Computational Biology: published August 18, 2025 | https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pcbi.1012985
Stochastic activity in low-rank recurrent neural networks
PLOS Computational Biology: published August 18, 2025 | https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pcbi.1013371
Mechanistic computational modeling of sFLT1 secretion dynamics
PLOS Computational Biology: published August 18, 2025 | https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pcbi.1013324
Heterogeneous synaptic homeostasis: A novel mechanism boosting information propagation in the cortex
PLOS Computational Biology: published August 18, 2025 | https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pcbi.1013398
Modelling the effects of adult emergence on the surveillance and age distribution of medically important mosquitoes
PLOS Computational Biology: published August 18, 2025 | https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pcbi.1013035
Predicting organoid morphology through a phase field model: Insights into cell division and lumenal pressure
PLOS Computational Biology: published August 18, 2025 | https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pcbi.1012090
Tactile stimulations reduce or promote the segregation of auditory streams: psychophysics and modeling
PLOS Computational Biology: published August 18, 2025 | https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pcbi.1012701
Connecting mass-action models and network models for infectious diseases
PLOS Computational Biology: published August 18, 2025 | https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pcbi.1013373
A feedforward mechanism for human-like contour integration
PLOS Computational Biology: published August 18, 2025 | https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pcbi.1013391
3D structure and stability prediction of DNA with multi-way junctions in ionic solutions
PLOS Computational Biology: published August 18, 2025 | https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pcbi.1013346
The challenge of chromatin model comparison and validation: A project from the first international 4D Nucleome Hackathon
PLOS Computational Biology: published August 19, 2025 | https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pcbi.1013358
Assessing variant effect predictors and disease mechanisms in intrinsically disordered proteins
PLOS Computational Biology: published August 19, 2025 | https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pcbi.1013400
Human-like monocular depth biases in deep neural networks
PLOS Computational Biology: published August 19, 2025 | https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pcbi.1013020
Leaky or polarised immunity: Non-Markovian modelling highlights the impact of immune memory assumptions
PLOS Computational Biology: published August 19, 2025 | https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pcbi.1013399
Modelling the effectiveness of Integrated Pest Management strategies for the control of Septoria tritici blotch
PLOS Computational Biology: published August 20, 2025 | https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pcbi.1013352
Decoding decision-making behavior from sparse neural spiking activity
PLOS Computational Biology: published August 21, 2025 | https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pcbi.1013335
Improving cell-type composition inference in spatial transcriptomics with SpaDAMA
PLOS Computational Biology: published August 21, 2025 | https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pcbi.1013354
CytoSpatio: Learning cell type spatial relationships using multirange, multitype point process models
PLOS Computational Biology: published August 21, 2025 | https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pcbi.1013409
NextVir: Enabling classification of tumor-causing viruses with genomic foundation models
PLOS Computational Biology: published August 21, 2025 | https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pcbi.1013360
In silico modeling of directed differentiation of induced pluripotent stem cells to definitive endoderm
PLOS Computational Biology: published August 21, 2025 | https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pcbi.1013407
A computational workflow for assessing drug effects on temporal signaling dynamics reveals robustness in stimulus-specific NFκB signaling
PLOS Computational Biology: published August 21, 2025 | https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pcbi.1013344
Stochastic model of IP3-induced Ca2+ spiking of HEK293 cells
PLOS Computational Biology: published August 22, 2025 | https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pcbi.1013322
Effects of recombination on multi-drug resistance evolution in Plasmodium falciparum malaria
PLOS Computational Biology: published August 25, 2025 | https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pcbi.1013401
Age polyethism can emerge from social learning: A game-theoretic investigation
PLOS Computational Biology: published August 25, 2025 | https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pcbi.1013415
Intra-vector infection dynamics challenge how to model the extrinsic incubation period for major arboviruses: dengue, Zika, and chikungunya
PLOS Computational Biology: published August 25, 2025 | https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pcbi.1013393
Evaluating COVID-19 vaccination policy in Québec (Canada) using a data-driven dynamic transmission model
PLOS Computational Biology: published August 25, 2025 | https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pcbi.1013207
Leveraging structure-informed machine learning for fast steric zipper propensity prediction across whole proteomes
PLOS Computational Biology: published August 25, 2025 | https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pcbi.1013395
Integrated pan-cancer analysis of RNA binding protein HuR investigates its biomarker potential in prognosis, immunotherapy, and drug sensitivity
PLOS Computational Biology: published August 25, 2025 | https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pcbi.1013374
Deep neural networks explain spiking activity in auditory cortex
PLOS Computational Biology: published August 25, 2025 | https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pcbi.1013334
Maynard Smith revisited: A multi-agent reinforcement learning approach to the coevolution of signalling behaviour
PLOS Computational Biology: published August 26, 2025 | https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pcbi.1013302
Mixotrophy for carbon-conserving waste upcycling
PLOS Computational Biology: published August 26, 2025 | https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pcbi.1013379
Data-driven analysis of fine-scale badger movement in the UK
PLOS Computational Biology: published August 28, 2025 | https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pcbi.1013372
Dual-purpose dynamics emerge from a heterogeneous cell population in Drosophila metamorphosis
PLOS Computational Biology: published August 28, 2025 | https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pcbi.1013331
SimPep and OP-AND: A deep learning framework and curated database for predicting osteogenic peptides
PLOS Computational Biology: published August 29, 2025 | https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pcbi.1013422
The R-loop grammar predicts R-loop formation under different topological constraints
PLOS Computational Biology: published August 29, 2025 | https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pcbi.1013376
Mechanistic modeling of cell viability assays with in silico lineage tracing
PLOS Computational Biology: published August 29, 2025 | https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pcbi.1013156
Corrections
Correction: Aggregating multiple test results to improve medical decision-making
PLOS Computational Biology: published August 4, 2025 | https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pcbi.1013347
Related Articles
Correction: Modelling African horse sickness emergence and transmission in the South African control area using a deterministic metapopulation approach
PLOS Computational Biology: published August 12, 2025 | https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pcbi.1013377
Related Articles
Methods
COEXIST: Coordinated single-cell integration of serial multiplexed tissue images
PLOS Computational Biology: published August 5, 2025 | https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pcbi.1013325
A neural network model enables worm tracking in challenging conditions and increases signal-to-noise ratio in phenotypic screens
PLOS Computational Biology: published August 8, 2025 | https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pcbi.1013345
IonBench: A benchmark of optimisation strategies for mathematical models of ion channel currents
PLOS Computational Biology: published August 14, 2025 | https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pcbi.1013319
PLNMFG: Pseudo-label guided non-negative matrix factorization model with graph constraint for single-cell multi-omics data clustering
PLOS Computational Biology: published August 18, 2025 | https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pcbi.1013375
Software
novoStoic2.0: An integrated framework for pathway synthesis, thermodynamic evaluation, and enzyme selection
PLOS Computational Biology: published August 6, 2025 | https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pcbi.1012516
A software ecosystem for brain tractometry processing, analysis, and insight
PLOS Computational Biology: published August 14, 2025 | https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pcbi.1013323
G4SNVHunter: An R/Bioconductor Package for Evaluating SNV-Induced Disruption of G-Quadruplex Structures Leveraging the G4Hunter Algorithm
PLOS Computational Biology: published August 18, 2025 | https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pcbi.1013368