Subcellular Systems - Molecular Theory of the Living Cell - page 297

monk, G. Mendel (1822-1884), established it as a scientific fact based on his
experimental studies on heritable traits in pea plants in the mid-nineteenth century
(See Row 1, Table 11.1 ). Mendel referred to the material entity or agent responsible
for transmitting heritable traits as a “factor,” which was later renamed as the “gene”
in 1909 (Row 4, Table 11.1 ). The term “gene” was coined in opposition to
“pangene,” the smallest particle representing one hereditary characteristic within
the framework of Darwin's ill-fated pangenesis hypothesis of inheritance (Row 3,
Table 11.1 ), as already mentioned above. Darwin himself referred to the inherited
material entity as gemmule , the material factor thought to be shed by every cell in
the body that collects in the reproductive organs before fertilization (Row 2,
Table 11.1 ).
Before proceeding further, it is important to stop and recall that, according to
Prigogine's theory of irreversible thermodynamics (Babloyantz 1986; Kondepudi
and Prigogine 1998; Kondepudi 2008), there are two and only two classes of
structures in the Universe - equilibrium and dissipative structures (Sects. 3.1 and
3.1.5 ) . The main difference between these two classes of structures is that equilib-
rium structures (or equilibrons ) are stable within the time window of observations,
requiring no expenditure of free energy, while dissipative structures (or
dissipatons ) are unstable and dynamic, absolutely dependent on a continuous
utilization of free energy to be maintained. It is often the case that one equilibrium
structure (e.g., candle) is transformed into another (e.g., CO 2 and water vapor)
spontaneously, generating unstable intermediates in the process (e.g., reactive
carbon-centered radicals) that self-organize into concentration patterns recognized
by human eyes as dissipative structures. Thus it can be stated that dissipative
structures presuppose equilibrium structures, that dissipative structures enclose
equilibrium structures, or that equilibrium structures can exist without dissipative
structures but dissipative structures cannot exist without equilibrium structures.
These relations are embodied in the triadic diagram shown in Fig. 3.3 .
The concept of the gene as the material agent responsible for transmitting
heritable traits from parents to offspring as established by Mendel by the mid-
nineteenth century is here claimed to belong to the class of dissipative structures
because transmitting anything is a form of work requiring dissipation of free energy
(Row 21, Table 11.1 ) and not to that of equilibrium structures as has been widely
assumed by molecular biologists in recent decades. It is further suggested that the
turning point when the original concept of the gene of Mendel was reduced to static
sequences of nucleotides occurred around the mid-twentieth century when in
agreement with Schr odinger's prediction, DNA was found to be the molecule

encoding heritable traits (see Rows 7-11, Table 11.1 ).
The transmission of heritable traits from one generation to the next requires not
only information (to be transmitted) but also energy dissipation to drive the
information transmission as mandated by the principle of the minimum energy
requirement for information transfer (see Shannon's channel capacity equation in
Sect. 4.8 ). Of the 21 items listed in Table 11.1 , 15 are concerned mainly with the
informational aspect of the gene, 3 items (i.e., Rows 11, 12, and 15) are related to
the energetic aspect, and only 3 items (Rows 17, 18, and 21) address both the energy

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