Analysis of cell‐target encounter by random filopodial projections

Dynamic projections from the surface of many motile cell types provide for variable contact with the extracellular environment and can be important in regulating cell migration events. For example, during nerve development and regeneration, the sensory motile tip of the axon exhibits long, slender filopodia projecting from the growth cone periphery. Extension and retraction of these filopodia continually remodel the points of contact between axon and surroundings. Experimental studies show that filopodial contact with specific extracellular features can guide subsequent growth cone migration, suggesting a potentially important means of engineering nerve growth to repair nerve injury or construct biological neural networks. A simulation model is presented of the dynamic filopodial structure on the nerve growth cone based on recent experimental characterization. The model is analyzed to obtain quantitative relationships between average filopodial characteristics, which are commonly measured experimental quantities, and the underlying parameters of individual filopodium dynamics. It is then applied to simulate encounter between a growth cone and its target due to filopodial dynamics alone. Filopodial contribution to growth cone‐target encounter is summarized in terms of a mean encounter time that is reminiscent of a first passage time for a diffusing particle. The parametric relationships in this study provide a basis for further investigation of filopodial‐mediated mechanisms in nerve growth and other cellular processes.