Complex dynamics of a tumor-immune system with antigenicity

Abstract

With the effect of antigenicity in consideration, we propose and analyze a conceptual model for the tumor-immune interaction. The model is described by a system of two ordinary differential equations. Though simple, the model can have complicated dynamical behaviors. Besides the tumor-free equilibrium, there can be up to three tumor-present equilibria, which can be a saddle or stable node/focus. Sufficient conditions on the nonexistence of nonconstant periodic solutions are provided. Bifurcation analysis including Hopf bifurcation and Bogdanov–Takens bifurcation is carried out. The theoretical results are supported by numerical simulations. Numerical simulations reveal the complexity of the dynamical behaviors of the model, which includes the subcritical/supercritical Hopf bifurcation, homoclinic bifurcation, saddle-node bifurcation at a nonhyperbolic periodic orbit, the appearance of two limit cycles with a singular closed orbit, and so on. Some biological implications of the theoretical results and numerical simulations are also provided.