Efficient Finite-Difference Estimation of Second-Order Parametric Sensitivities for Stochastic Discrete Biochemical Systems

Biochemical reaction systems in a cell exhibit stochastic behaviour, owing to the unpredictable nature of the molecular interactions. The fluctuations at the molecular level may lead to a different behaviour than that predicted by the deterministic model of the reaction rate equations, when some reacting species have low population numbers. As a result, stochastic models are vital to accurately describe system dynamics. Sensitivity analysis is an important method for studying the influence of the variations in various parameters on the output of a biochemical model. We propose a finite-difference strategy for approximating second-order parametric sensitivities for stochastic discrete models of biochemically reacting systems. This strategy utilizes adaptive tau-leaping schemes and coupling of the perturbed and nominal processes for an efficient sensitivity estimation. The advantages of the new technique are demonstrated through its application to several biochemical system models with practical significance.