Second-Order Catalytic Quasispecies Yields First-Order Phase Transition

TL;DR

This paper investigates how second-order catalytic interactions influence phase transitions in quasispecies models, revealing that higher reaction orders induce abrupt, first-order transitions with implications for viral replication dynamics.

Contribution

It introduces a novel analysis of second-order catalytic mechanisms in quasispecies models, showing they cause first-order phase transitions unlike the continuous transitions in first-order models.

Findings

Second-order mechanisms cause first-order phase transitions.

Higher interaction order leads to lower transition thresholds.

Implications for RNA virus replication dynamics.

Abstract

The quasispecies model describes processes related to the origin of life and viral evolutionary dynamics. We discuss how the error catastrophe that reflects the transition from localized to delocalized quasispecies population is affected by catalytic replication of different reaction orders. Specifically, we find that 2nd order mechanisms lead to 1st order discontinuous phase transitions in the viable population fraction, and conclude that the "higher" the interaction the "lower" the transition. We discuss potential implications for understanding the replication of highly mutating RNA viruses.