Comparative analysis of topological patterns in different mammalian networks.

We have systematically analyzed various topological patterns comprising 1, 2 or 3 nodes in the mammalian metabolic, signal transduction and transcription networks: These patterns were analyzed with regard to their frequency and statistical over-representation in each network, as well as to their topological significance for the coherence of the networks. The latter property was evaluated using the pairwise disconnectivity index, which we have recently introduced to quantify how critical network components are for the internal connectedness of a network. The 1-node pattern made up by a vertex with a self-loop has been found to exert particular properties in all three networks.