Analysis of cellular signal transduction from an information theoretic approach

• Information theory is applicable to cellular information transmission analysis.
• Mutual information is the amount of information reliably transmitted over pathways.
• Channel capacity reveals the design principles of signal transduction.
• Information can be coded by combination of time series and molecular species.

Signal transduction processes the information of various cellular functions, including cell proliferation, differentiation, and death. The information for controlling cell fate is transmitted by concentrations of cellular signaling molecules. However, how much information is transmitted in signaling pathways has thus far not been investigated. Shannon's information theory paves the way to quantitatively analyze information transmission in signaling pathways. The theory has recently been applied to signal transduction, and mutual information of signal transduction has been determined to be a measure of information transmission. We review this work and provide an overview of how signal transduction transmits informational input and exerts biological output.