Transport and Interface Physics as a Bridge for Multiscale Biological Modeling

Advancing understanding in biological systems increasingly depends on the ability to rigorously connect subcellular and molecular processes with tissue- and organ-scale behaviors. While multiscale modeling has achieved considerable progress, major challenges persist in the systematic treatment of mass transport, fluid flow, and interface permeability across biological barriers. Accurate representation of transport mechanisms—from membrane-level diffusion and reaction–diffusion processes to Darcy-scale flow—remains a critical barrier to predictive modeling across biological scales. Existing studies have demonstrated the value of incorporating thermodynamic constraints and interface permeability, but a principled approach to embedding these processes within multiscale frameworks is still needed. Ongoing debates center on upscaling methods, validation of micro-to-macro parameter derivation, and the reproducibility of computational models, highlighting a clear need for focused investigation of transport and interface physics as the bridge across biological scales.This Research Topic aims to advance the rigorous integration of reaction–diffusion, advection, thermodynamically consistent flux laws, and interface permeability into multiscale modeling frameworks. The main objective is to establish transport and interface physics not as secondary assumptions, but as core mechanistic links coupling microscopic biological processes to macroscopic tissue behavior. We especially welcome contributions that explicitly bridge scales, such as micro-to-macro parameter derivation and validation, and encourage the inclusion of reproducible computational benchmarks or open datasets. By emphasizing formal and physically consistent treatment of transport, this Research Topic seeks to improve predictive power and reproducibility of biological models.The scope of this Research Topic is limited to original research, computational methods, tutorials, and comprehensive reviews that demonstrate, analyze, or implement transport and interface models spanning from the subcellular to organ scale. We prioritize the examination of mechanistic scale bridging, rigorous upscaling, and the provision of reproducible or reference datasets. To gather further insights, we welcome articles addressing, but not limited to, the following themes:• Reaction–diffusion systems across scales: homogenization, volume averaging, hybrid stochastic–continuum approaches linking molecular/cellular kinetics to tissue-level predictions.• Interface permeability and membrane transport: derivation of effective permeability from microscale structure in membranes, epithelial layers, and extracellular matrix.• Thermodynamic consistency in coupled transport: flux laws based on chemical potentials, Onsager relations, and entropy-consistent upscaling.• Flow–biology coupling in porous/fibrous tissues: Darcy–Brinkman–Stokes formulations, pore-network models, and applications in vascularized tissue, tumors, lymph nodes, and gut mucosa.• Computational methods for scale bridging: lattice Boltzmann, micro-continuum, and hybrid (concurrent/sequential) multiscale schemes that preserve physical fidelity.Article types prioritized include methods articles with reproducible examples; benchmark or data descriptor articles establishing reference problems for multiscale transport; review or tutorial papers comparing upscaling approaches and identifying best practices; and application papers demonstrating improved predictive capability from rigorous transport/interface treatment. Topic editors: Paula A Vasquez, Carlos Villarreal, Yuan-Nan Young, Michael Cromer Source: https://www.frontiersin.org/research-topics/79259/transport-and-interface-physics-as-a-bridge-for-multiscale-biological-modeling