Process algebra-based computational tools in ecological modelling

Ecological systems and processes are inherently variable. The multiplicity of interacting processes and the variety of components call for multi-level, integrative models that keep track of stochasticity and quantify its consequences. Mathematics and physics already helped biologists a lot, but the composability feature of process algebra-based computational tools may provide additional help in modelling interacting stochastic processes. Compositional models can be built in a modular way, and can be easily standardized and evaluated rigorously. Following initial applications in systems biology, the concepts of parallelism and concurrency can also be of key importance to future systems ecology. We provide an overview of process algebra-based approaches in ecology, discuss the perspectives of this research line and provide a toy and a real example for illustration. © 2011 Elsevier B.V.