Radiation and nutritional adaptation: a sequence of foci of quasi-equilibrium state

This article analyzes intracellular processes of adaptation to the nutrient medium and radiation exposure.

The analysis uses experimental data on the effects of nutrient medium on yeast cells and published research of cellular responses to radiation exposure.

Adaptation of cells to both the nutrient medium and external radiation exposure revealed the consistent formation of pseudo-wild cell centers (PWCs) dependent on the environment and genotype. These quasi-equilibrium foci change as PWCs undergo modification, death, and proliferation. The cellular adaptation system demonstrates an interaction between the environment, genes, and proteins. Adaptation depends on external active energy, and is associated with variability in the secondary structure of genes and the tertiary structure of proteins.

Adaptation creates an energy-dependent sequence of quasi-equilibrium states of PWC foci by optimizing the conformational structures of genes and proteins. From a physical perspective, the active energy of a changing environment disrupts but immediately optimizes genetic structures according to the principle of free energy minimization; quasi-equilibrium foci of PWCs are continuously formed, ensuring diversity, stability, and reproduction under suitable conditions.