Discrete Mathematics & Theoretical Computer Science (Jan 2008)

On Hereditary Helly classes of graphs

  • Marina Groshaus,
  • Jayme Luiz Szwarcfiter

Journal volume & issue
Vol. 10, no. 1

Abstract

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In graph theory, the Helly property has been applied to families of sets, such as cliques, disks, bicliques, and neighbourhoods, leading to the classes of clique-Helly, disk-Helly, biclique-Helly, neighbourhood-Helly graphs, respectively. A natural question is to determine for which graphs the corresponding Helly property holds, for every induced subgraph. This leads to the corresponding classes of hereditary clique-Helly, hereditary disk-Helly, hereditary biclique-Helly and hereditary neighbourhood-Helly graphs. In this paper, we describe characterizations in terms of families of forbidden subgraphs, for the classes of hereditary biclique-Helly and hereditary neighbourhood-Helly graphs. We consider both open and closed neighbourhoods. The forbidden subgraphs are all of fixed size, implying polynomial time recognition for these classes.