Rational Design and Methods of Analysis for the Study of Short- and Long-Term Dynamic Responses of Eukaryotic Systems

The dynamics of eukaryotic systems provide us with a signature of their response to stress, perturbations, or sustained, cyclic, or periodic variations and fluctuations. Studying the dynamic behavior of such systems is therefore elemental in achieving a mechanistic understanding of cellular behavior. This conceptual chapter discusses some of the key aspects that need to be considered in the study of dynamic responses of eukaryotic systems, in particular of eukaryotic networks. However, it does not aim to provide an exhaustive evaluation of the existing methodologies. The discussions in the chapter primarily relate to the cellular networks of eukaryotes and essentially leave higher dynamic community structures such as social networks, epidemic spreading, or ecological networks out of the scope of this argument.