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Updated: Jul 3, 2026
06:55
Synthesis of Cyclic Polymers and Characterization of Their Diffusive Motion in the Melt State at the Single Molecule Level
Published on: September 26, 2016
Nonequilibrium generation of information in copolymerization processes.
David Andrieux1, Pierre Gaspard
1Center for Nonlinear Phenomena and Complex Systems, Université Libre de Bruxelles, Code Postal 231, Campus Plaine, B-1050 Brussels, Belgium. dandrieu@ulb.ac.be
Summary
Dissipation in fluctuating copolymerization is linked to generated information, revealing how pattern and dynamics interplay in non-equilibrium systems. This framework aids understanding DNA replication.
Area of Science:
- * Non-equilibrium statistical mechanics
- * Biophysics and molecular biology
Background:
- * Copolymerization processes are fundamental in polymer science and molecular assembly.
- * Non-equilibrium dynamics are crucial for understanding biological processes like DNA replication.
- * The relationship between energy dissipation and information generation in such systems remains an active area of research.
Purpose of the Study:
- * To establish a theoretical framework connecting dissipation and information generation in fluctuating copolymerization.
- * To explore the role of templates in these non-equilibrium processes.
- * To apply the derived principles to the specific case of DNA replication.
Main Methods:
- * Theoretical analysis of general fluctuating copolymerization models.
- * Consideration of systems with and without underlying templates.
- * Derivation of relationships between thermodynamic dissipation and information-theoretic quantities.
Main Results:
- * A direct correlation is found between dissipation and generated information in fluctuating copolymerization.
- * Information acquisition is shown to arise from the interaction of stored patterns and dynamic evolution.
- * The framework successfully models aspects of DNA replication as a non-equilibrium information-processing event.
Conclusions:
- * Dissipation and information generation are intrinsically linked in non-equilibrium copolymerization.
- * Understanding this link provides insights into how biological systems acquire and process information.
- * The study offers a novel perspective on DNA replication through the lens of statistical physics and information theory.
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