Information and communication theory in molecular biology

The DNA sequencing efforts of the past years together with rapid progress in sequencing technology have generated a huge amount of sequence data available in public molecular databases. This recent development makes it statistically feasible to apply universal concepts from Shannon’s information theory to problems in molecular biology, e.g to use mutual information for gene mapping and phylogenetic classification. Additionally, the genetic information in the cell is continuously subject to mutations. However, it has to be passed from generation to generation with high fidelity, raising the question of existence of error protection and correction mechanisms similar to those used in technical communication systems. Finally, better understanding of genetic information processing on the molecular level in the cell can be acquired by looking for parallels to well establishedmodels in communication theory, e.g. there exist analogies betweengeneexpression and frame synchronization. P. Hanus (B) · B. Goebel · J. Dingel · J. Weindl · J. Hagenauer Institute for Communications Engineering, TU-München, Arcisstr. 21, 80290 Munich, Germany e-mail: [email protected] J. Zech Institute for Statistical Medicine and Epidemiology, TU-München, Clinic “Rechts der Isar”, Ismaninger Str. 22, 81675 Munich, Germany Z. Dawy Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering, American University of Beirut, P.O. Box 11-0236, Riad El-Solh, Beirut 1107 2020, Lebanon J. C. Mueller Max Planck Institute for Ornithology, Postfach 1564, Haus Nr. 5, 82319 Seewiesen, Germany