Increased accuracy of ligand sensing by receptor internalization

TL;DR

This paper demonstrates through thermodynamic modeling that receptor internalization enhances cellular ligand sensing accuracy, aligning with experimental data and highlighting its biological importance.

Contribution

It introduces a thermodynamic model showing how receptor internalization improves sensing accuracy, extending previous models and providing biological relevance.

Findings

Internalization increases sensing accuracy.

Model aligns with experimental receptor data.

Receptor internalization reduces ligand overcounting.

Abstract

Many types of cells can sense external ligand concentrations with cell-surface receptors at extremely high accuracy. Interestingly, ligand-bound receptors are often internalized, a process also known as receptor-mediated endocytosis. While internalization is involved in a vast number of important functions for the life of a cell, it was recently also suggested to increase the accuracy of sensing ligand as the overcounting of the same ligand molecules is reduced. Here we show, by extending simple ligand-receptor models to out-of-equilibrium thermodynamics, that internalization increases the accuracy with which cells can measure ligand concentrations in the external environment. Comparison with experimental rates of real receptors demonstrates that our model has indeed biological significance.