Nonequilibrium entropic bounds for Darwinian replicators

TL;DR

This paper reviews non-equilibrium thermodynamic bounds on different types of prebiotic replicators, connecting thermodynamics with evolutionary models to understand constraints on the emergence of life.

Contribution

It introduces a thermodynamic framework to analyze constraints on various replicator types, bridging non-equilibrium physics with prebiotic evolution models.

Findings

Thermodynamic bounds differ among parabolic, Malthusian, and hyperbolic replicators.

The extended second law provides insights into the energetic constraints of replicator emergence.

Theoretical analysis links thermodynamics with evolutionary dynamics in prebiotic systems.

Abstract

Life evolved on our planet by means of a combination of Darwinian selection and innovations leading to higher levels of complexity. The emergence and selection of replicating entities is a central problem in prebiotic evolution. Theoretical models have shown how populations of different types of replicating entities exclude or coexist with other classes of replicators. Models are typically kinetic, based on standard replicator equations. On the other hand, the presence of thermodynamical constrains for these systems remain an open question. This is largely due to the lack of a general theory of out of statistical methods for systems far from equilibrium. Nonetheless, a first approach to this problem has been put forward in a series of novel developements in non-equilibrium physics, under the rubric of the extended second law of thermodynamics. The work presented here is twofold: firstly, we review this theoretical framework and provide a brief description of the three fundamental replicator types in prebiotic evolution: parabolic, malthusian and hyperbolic. Finally, we employ these previously mentioned techinques to explore how replicators are constrained by thermodynamics.