Related Experiment Video
Updated: Apr 15, 2026
20:28
A Toolkit to Enable Hydrocarbon Conversion in Aqueous Environments
Published on: October 1, 2012
14.5K
Quantifying the entropic cost of cellular growth control
Daniele De Martino1, Fabrizio Capuani2, Andrea De Martino2,3
1Institute of Science and Technology Austria, 3400 Klosterneuburg, Austria.
Physical Review. E
|January 20, 2018
Summary
Cellular metabolism regulation minimizes entropy for optimal growth. This study quantifies metabolic regulation costs, revealing growth suppression is as costly as enhancement, impacting cell populations and environments.
Area of Science:
- Systems Biology
- Metabolic Engineering
- Statistical Mechanics
Background:
- Cellular metabolism can be viewed as a physical system's phase space.
- Metabolic regulation aims to reduce system entropy by selecting optimal cellular configurations.
Purpose of the Study:
- Quantify the regulation needed to control cellular growth rate.
- Apply a maximum-entropy approach to metabolic phenotypes.
- Link mean growth rate to minimal metabolic regulation requirements.
Main Methods:
- Utilized a maximum-entropy framework.
- Analyzed metabolic flux patterns using genome-scale models.
- Developed a phase diagram to illustrate regulation costs.
Main Results:
- Demonstrated that growth suppression carries regulatory costs comparable to growth enhancement.
- Provided an interpretation of the inverse temperature parameter (β) in relation to growth dynamics.
- Showed that asymptotic β values depend on environmental carrying capacity, initial colony size, and inoculum sampling distribution.
Conclusions:
- Metabolic regulation is crucial for optimizing cellular growth.
- The cost of regulation is symmetrical for growth enhancement and suppression.
- Environmental and initial conditions significantly influence population-level regulatory dynamics.
Related Concept Videos
02:36Cells Coordinate Growth and Proliferation
5.3K
Cell size is a significant factor impacting cellular design, function, and fitness. There exists some internal coordination by which cells double their masses before division, thus, achieving homeostasis. Coordination between cell growth and proliferation depends on the checkpoints in between cell cycle phases. Loss of coordination or failure in the checkpoint mechanism can drive the cell to uncontrolled growth and loss of cellular function. Like dividing cells that coordinate cellular growth,...
5.3K
01:16Non-equilibrium in the Cell
5.7K
An important concept in studying metabolism and energy is that of chemical equilibrium. Most chemical reactions are reversible. They can proceed in both directions, releasing energy into their environment in one direction, and absorbing it from the environment in the other direction. The same is true for the chemical reactions involved in cell metabolism, such as the breaking down and building up of proteins into and from individual amino acids, respectively. Reactants within a closed system...
5.7K
01:22Entropy within the Cell
14.2K
A living cell's primary tasks of obtaining, transforming, and using energy to do work may seem simple. However, the second law of thermodynamics explains why these tasks are harder than they appear. None of the energy transfers in the universe are completely efficient. In every energy transfer, some amount of energy is lost in a form that is unusable. In most cases, this form is heat energy. Thermodynamically, heat energy is defined as the energy transferred from one system to another that...
14.2K
01:28The Cell Cycle Control System
6.5K
The cell cycle regulation directs how a cell proceeds from one phase to the next and begins mitosis. The cell cycle control system includes intracellular regulatory molecules and external triggers. They provide "stop" or "advance" signals and operate at specific cell cycle stages termed checkpoints to ensure that a particular process is completed before the cell advances to the next phase.
Cyclins and cyclin-dependent kinases (Cdks) are the primary cell cycle regulators and...
Cyclins and cyclin-dependent kinases (Cdks) are the primary cell cycle regulators and...
6.5K
01:27Molecular Factors Affecting Cell Division
4.1K
Several external and internal factors influence the initiation and inhibition of cell division. For instance, the death of nearby cells or the release of human growth hormone (hGH) promotes cell division. In contrast, lack of hGH or crowding of cells can inhibit cell division.
Several proteins function as internal regulators to ensure each cell cycle stage is completed faithfully before proceeding to the next. Regulator molecules may act directly or influence the activity or production of other...
Several proteins function as internal regulators to ensure each cell cycle stage is completed faithfully before proceeding to the next. Regulator molecules may act directly or influence the activity or production of other...
4.1K
01:27Microbial Growth Measurement: Indirect Methods
2.4K
Estimating microbial growth is essential for understanding population dynamics and environmental adaptations. Indirect methods provide valuable insights by measuring parameters such as turbidity, metabolic activity, and biomass, enabling efficient and reproducible assessments.During exponential growth, microbial cells scatter light proportionally to their biomass, a principle used in turbidity measurements. About one million cells per milliliter produce detectable scattering, which a...
2.4K