A growth model for RNA secondary structures

TL;DR

This paper introduces a hierarchical growth model for RNA secondary structures, providing analytical solutions and numerical validation, which enhances understanding of RNA folding and tree-growth processes.

Contribution

It presents a novel hierarchical model for RNA secondary structure growth that is analytically solvable and equivalent to a tree-growth model, aiding in the study of complex biological structures.

Findings

Analytical solutions for large RNA molecules

Numerical simulations up to 6500 bases

Model equivalence aids understanding of tree-growth processes

Abstract

A hierarchical model for the growth of planar arch structures for RNA secondary structures is presented, and shown to be equivalent to a tree-growth model. Both models can be solved analytically, giving access to scaling functions for large molecules, and corrections to scaling, checked by numerical simulations of up to 6500 bases. The equivalence of both models should be helpful in understanding more general tree-growth processes.