A rate-distortion scenario for the emergence and evolution of noisy molecular codes

TL;DR

This paper models the emergence and evolution of molecular codes using rate-distortion theory, framing it as an optimal channel design problem influenced by cost and quality considerations.

Contribution

It introduces a novel application of rate-distortion theory to explain molecular code evolution through simple channel design principles.

Findings

Molecular codes can be understood as optimal information channels.

The interplay of cost and quality influences code smoothness and evolution.

Population dynamics models support the channel design perspective.

Abstract

We discuss, in terms of rate-distortion theory, the fitness of molecular codes as the problem of designing an optimal information channel. The fitness is governed by an interplay between the cost and quality of the channel, which induces smoothness in the code. By incorporating this code fitness into population dynamics models, we suggest that the emergence and evolution of molecular codes may be explained by simple channel design considerations.