Competition and cooperation in dynamic replication networks.

The simultaneous replication of six coiled-coil peptide mutants by reversible thiol-thioester exchange reactions is described. Experimental analysis of the time dependent evolution of networks formed by the peptides under different conditions reveals a complex web of molecular interactions and consequent mutant replication, governed by competition for resources and by autocatalytic and/or cross-catalytic template-assisted reactions. A kinetic model, first of its kind, is then introduced, allowing simulation of varied network behaviour as a consequence of changing competition and cooperation scenarios. We suggest that by clarifying the kinetic description of these relatively complex dynamic networks, both at early stages of the reaction far from equilibrium and at later stages approaching equilibrium, one lays the foundation for studying dynamic networks out-of-equilibrium in the near future.