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ABC transporters are billion-year-old Maxwell Demons
Solange Flatt1, Daniel Maria Busiello1,2, Stefano Zamuner1
1Institute of Physics, School of Basic Sciences, École Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne-EPFL, Lausanne, 1015 Switzerland.
Communications Physics
|April 26, 2024
Summary
ATP-Binding Cassette (ABC) transporters function as molecular machines, importing/exporting substances using ATP. Our model reveals these transporters are autonomous Maxwell Demons, using information to defy thermodynamic equilibrium.
Area of Science:
- Biochemistry
- Molecular Biology
- Thermodynamics
Background:
- ATP-Binding Cassette (ABC) transporters are ubiquitous cellular machines.
- They mediate substrate transport across membranes, driven by ATP hydrolysis.
- Maintaining concentration gradients is a key function.
Purpose of the Study:
- To propose a model of ABC transporters as molecular realizations of the autonomous Maxwell Demon.
- To bridge the gap between molecular mechanisms and information theory in ABC transporter function.
Main Methods:
- Development of a biophysical and biochemical model for ABC transporters.
- Analysis of the model to identify emergent Maxwell Demon characteristics.
- Connecting molecular properties to information processing concepts.
Main Results:
- The model demonstrates ABC transporters are exact molecular realizations of the autonomous Maxwell Demon.
- Allostery emerges as a key mechanism for information processing within these transporters.
- The framework links molecular operations to information theory concepts.
Conclusions:
- ABC transporters leverage information processing, akin to a Maxwell Demon, to drive systems away from equilibrium.
- Allosteric regulation is crucial for the information-driven transport mechanism.
- This work provides a novel information-theoretic perspective on ABC transporter function.
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