Biology Reference
In-Depth Information
Table 17.5 The quality-quantity dualities found in biology
Quality
Quantity
Proteins
Amino acid sequences
Concentrations or copy number
RNA
Ribonucleotide sequences
Copy numbers
Genes
Deoxyribonucleotide sequences
Copy numbers
Ribonoscopy
RNA sequences
RNA trajectories (or
waves
); i.e., n(t), where
n is the copy number and t is time
When biologists think about proteins, RNAs, or genes in the living cell, they
tend to think more about the qualitative aspects of these objects, that is, their
sequences and three-dimensional shapes than their quantitative aspects, such as
the changes in their concentrations (or copy numbers) inside the cell as a function of
time. Qualitative aspects appear to be more closely related to
equilibrium structures
or
equilibrons
, while quantitative aspects are related to
dissipative structures
or
quantity bias” in biology. This bias is prevalent in the field of microarray
experiments where practically every measurement is interpreted in terms of
genes
(quality) underestimating the importance of their
concentration changes
in time or
trajectories (quantity), leading to false positive (Type I) or false negative (Type II)
