Semiotic Structures and Meaningful Information in Biological Systems

该项目的目标是生物信息的语义方面。我们将开发新的方法来客观地识别和描述活细胞的符号子系统。基本思想依赖于有机代码的识别（如Barbieri，Naturwissenschaften 95，577-599，2008最近所综述的）以及这些代码如何物理地实例化。首先，我们开发正式的概念和措施，允许描述和量化的有机代码的实验观察的基础上。其次，我们将这些方法应用于一个具体的生物信号系统，其中的代码是很难确定的：内部和外部动粒蛋白和它们参与结构的形成和有丝分裂的控制（特别是纺锤体组装检查点）。所需的数据在Diekmann组中测量（在第二个资助期：扩展和更具体的数据集），而在迪特里希组中，数据被建模，以便从理论上描述细胞周期依赖的内部和外部动粒组装和功能。作为一个额外的好处，该项目将提供一种新的方式来描述和理解生物系统从语义的角度。我们将能够在分子水平上对生物信息处理进行比较和分类。

The project aims at the semantic aspect of biological information. We will develop novel methods to objectively identify and describe semiotic sub-systems of living cells. The basic idea relies on the identification of organic codes (as recently reviewed by Barbieri, Naturwissenschaften 95, 577-599, 2008) and on how these codes are physically instantiated. First, we develop formal concepts and measures that allow to describe and quantify organic codes based on experimental observations. Second, we will apply these methods to a concrete biological signalling system in which the codes are difficult to identify: inner and outer kinetochore proteins and their involvement in structure formation and the control of mitosis (especially the spindle assembly checkpoint). The required data are measured in the Diekmann group (in the second funding period: extended and more specific data sets), while in the Dittrich group the data are modelled in order to theoretically describe cell cycle dependent inner and outer kinetochore assembly and function. As an additional benefit, this project will deliver a novel way to describe and understand biological systems from a semantic perspective. We will be able to compare and classify biological information processing at the molecular level.