Self-organized transition to coherent activity in disordered media

TL;DR

This paper demonstrates how synchronized oscillations can spontaneously emerge in disordered media of coupled cells, explaining transitions to coherent activity in biological systems like the pregnant uterus.

Contribution

It reveals a mechanism for self-organized synchronization in disordered systems of coupled excitable and passive cells, without centralized control.

Findings

Increasing coupling strength induces wave-like activity.

Transitions from localized to global synchronization occur.

Results may explain pre-delivery uterine activity patterns.

Abstract

Synchronized oscillations are of critical functional importance in many biological systems. We show that such oscillations can arise without centralized coordination in a disordered system of electrically coupled excitable and passive cells. Increasing the coupling strength results in waves that lead to coherent periodic activity, exhibiting cluster, local and global synchronization under different conditions. Our results may explain the self-organized transition in a pregnant uterus from transient, localized activity initially to system-wide coherent excitations just before delivery.