RuleDSD: A rule-based modelling and simulation tool for DNA strand displacement systems

Abstract

RuleDSD is a tool to support the rule-based modelling and simulation of DNA Strand Displacement (DSD) systems. It constitutes a software pipeline programmed in Python and integrated with PySB, a standard framework for rule-based modelling of biochemical systems. The input to Ru1eDSD is a domain-level model of a DSD system, where each initial DNA complex is described at the level of named pairing domains. The Ru1eDSD pipeline converts these domain-level descriptions into a canonical graph representation, and based on this performs a full state-space enumeration of DNA species reachable by applying the basic rules of DNA strand displacement reactions to the ensemble of initial species. The resulting chemical reaction network is then converted into a BioNetGen model and imported into the PySB framework for deterministic or stochastic simulation and analysis. Altogether, Ru1eDSD thus provides a customised front-end for rule-based modelling and simulation of DNA Strand Displacement systems using the BioNetGen simulation engine, and opens up further possibilities for harnessing the well-established rule-based model ling methods and tools that can easily be utilised through the PySB wrapper.