Synchronization of metabolic oscillations:two cells and ensembles of adsorbed cells.

We treat synchronization of metabolic oscillations in two cellsand in ensembles of cells adsorbed at the liquid-solid interface.(i) Synchronization of oscillations in two cells is assumedto occur via perturbation of the metabolite concentration nearone cell due to the metabolite diffusion flux from another cell.This direct channel of synchronization may be important ifthe distance between two cells is comparable with the cell diameter.The corresponding coupling coefficient is found to be proportionalto the metabolite diffusion coefficient and inversely proportionalto the cell radius and the distance between the cells.(ii) In the case of ensembles of adsorbed cells, synchronizationof oscillations is considered to be indirect, i.e., to occur viathe metabolite concentration formed outside the cells nearthe interface due to metabolite diffusion from the cells. We havederived a general integral equation relating the metaboliteconcentration near the interface with concentrations inside the cells.PACS: 82.37.-j, 82.40.Bj.