Investigating the Evolution and Development of Biological Systems from the Perspective of Thermo-Kinetics and Systems Theory.

Abstract

Life itself is grander than the sum of its constituent molecules. Any living organism may be regarded as a part of a dissipative process that connects irreversible energy consumption with growth, reproduction, and evolution. Under energy-fuelled, far-from-equilibrium conditions, chemical systems capable of exponential growth can manifest a specific form of stability- dynamic kinetic stability (DKS) - indicating the persistence of self-reproducible entities. This kinetic behavior is associated with thermodynamic conditions far from equilibrium leading to an evolutionary view of the origin of life in which increasing entities have to be associated with the dissipation of free energy. This review aims to reformulate Darwinian theory in physicochemical terms so that it can handle both animate and inanimate systems, thus helping to overcome this theoretical divide. The expanded formulation is based on the principle of dynamic kinetic stability and evidence from the emerging field of systems chemistry. Although the classic Darwinian theory is useful for understanding the origins and evolution of species, it is not meant to primarily build an explicit framework for predicting potential evolution routes. Throughout the last century, the inherently systemic and dynamic nature of the biological systems has been brought to the attention of researchers. During the last decades, "systems" approaches to biology and genome evolution are gaining ever greater significance providing the possibility of a deeper interpretation of the basic concepts of life. Further progress of this approach depends on crossing disciplinary boundaries and complex simulations of biological systems. Evolutionary systems biology (ESB) through the integration of methods from evolutionary biology and systems biology aims to the understanding of the fundamental principles of life as well as the prediction of biological systems evolution.