PyRates—A code-generation tool for modeling dynamical systems in biology and beyond

We present PyRates, a code-generation tool for dynamical systems modeling applied to biological systems. Together with its extensions PyCoBi and RectiPy, PyRates provides a framework for modeling and analyzing complex biological systems via methods such as parameter sweeps, bifurcation analysis, and model fitting. We highlight the main features of this framework, with an emphasis on new features that have been introduced since the initial publication of the software, such as the extensive code generation capacities and widespread support for delay-coupled systems. Using a collection of mathematical models taken from various fields of biology, we demonstrate how PyRates enables analysis of the behavior of complex nonlinear systems using a diverse suite of tools. This includes examples where we use PyRates to interface a bifurcation analysis tool written in Fortran, to optimize model parameters via gradient descent in PyTorch, and to serve as a model definition interface for new dynamical systems analysis tools.