# Estimating physical conditions supporting gradients of ATP concentration in the eukaryotic cell

## TL;DR

This paper explores how ATP concentration gradients form in eukaryotic cells based on the spatial distribution of ATP sources and sinks.

## Contribution

A mesoscopic reaction-diffusion model is used to determine general conditions for ATP gradients in eukaryotic cells.

## Key findings

- Spatial clustering of ATP sources or sinks leads to large ATP concentration gradients.
- Rapid diffusion prevents large gradients when sources and sinks are evenly distributed.
- The model applies to cells of different sizes, suggesting broad relevance.

## Abstract

The ATP molecule serves as an energy currency in eukaryotes (and all life), providing the energy needed for many essential cellular processes. But the extent to which substantial spatial differences exist in ATP concentration in the cell remains incompletely known. It is variously argued that ATP diffuses too quickly for large gradients to be established, or that the high rates of ATP production and use (sources and sinks) can support large gradients even with rapid diffusion—and microscopic models and detailed experiments in different specific cases support both pictures. Here, we attempt a mesoscopic investigation, using reaction-diffusion modeling in a simple biophysical picture of the cell to attempt to ask, generally, which conditions cause substantial ATP gradients to emerge within eukaryotic cells. If ATP sources (like mitochondria) or sinks (like the nucleus) are spatially clustered, large fold changes in concentration can exist across the cell; if sources and sinks are more spread, then rapid diffusion indeed prevents large gradients from being established. This dependence holds in model cells of different sizes, suggesting its generality across cell types. Our theoretical work will complement developing intracellular approaches exploring ATP concentration inside eukaryotic cells.