Modern Modeling of Single-Cell Migration: From Membrane Tension and Galvanotaxis to Machine Learning

Cell migration phenomenon has inspired and benefited from computational modeling for decades. Here, we review recent applications of traditional bottom-up modeling to three aspects of cell migration: the role of membrane tension (MT) in organizing directional cell motility, the role of the electric field (EF) as the directional cue for migration, and the mechanics of three-dimensional migration. We then discuss nascent applications of machine learning (ML) to cell migration and galvanotaxis. We focus on the migratory mechanisms of the single cell and highlight the feedback between theory and experiment.