Information Transfer in Biological Systems

Purdue University, West Lafayette IN

Investigators

Abstract

With the high-level goal of understanding the role of information in biological systems, the proposed project focuses on a number of important problems at the interface of mathematics, biology, and information science -- mathematical modeling and analytical techniques for information flow in biological systems, extraction of signals (informative substructures) in biological sequences, and quantification and extraction of signals in biological networks. These problems are motivated by structural and functional characterization of biological abstractions, with significant implications for understanding disease and intervention. There are foundational mathematical challenges at the heart of these problems. To address these, the project introduces the concept of mutation and Darwin channels to model flow of genetic information. It uses random walks on nilpotent Lie groups to find significant subsequences and to solve the capacity of the deletion channel. It targets a range of analytic and probabilistic techniques for discovering motifs and informative structures in biological sequences and networks. Information is at the core of virtually every aspect of our lives and shapes our universe in fundamental ways -- understanding and harnessing it holds the key to foundational advances in life sciences. Information contained in the genes and their interrelationships is what `informs' the organism and manifests in its form. Essential functions of living organisms involve generation, consumption, processing, preservation, and duplication of information. Quantification, representation, and flow of information in biosystems, which form the essential components of this project, pose important problems with tremendous impact. In addition to analytical methods, algorithms, and software for understanding the role of information in biological systems, this project also makes significant contributions to education at undergraduate and graduate levels in the form of instructional material, and outreach to underrepresented groups through focused recruitment and retention efforts.