Toward Interdisciplinary Synergies in Molecular Communications: Perspectives from Synthetic Biology, Nanotechnology, Communications Engineering and Philosophy of Science

Abstract

Within many chemical and biological systems, both synthetic and natural, communication via chemical messengers is widely viewed as a key feature. Often known as molecular communication, such communication has been a concern in the fields of synthetic biologists, nanotechnologists, communications engineers, and philosophers of science. However, interactions between these fields are currently limited. Nevertheless, the fact that the same basic phenomenon is studied by all of these fields raises the question of whether there are unexploited interdisciplinary synergies. In this paper, we summarize the perspectives of each field on molecular communications, highlight potential synergies, discuss ongoing challenges to exploit these synergies, and present future perspectives for interdisciplinary efforts in this area.

Towards Autonomous Materials–Challenges in Chemical Communication

“…At the fundamental level, new chemical solutions to increase information transmission rates, latency, channel throughput, and capacity, as well as increasing energy efficiency and reducing error rates are necessary. [10,11] In order for chemical communication to be useful for materials and robotics, more attention should be paid to the highlighted challenges. Exciting ideas, solutions, and directions exist, one just has to embark on them!…”

“…Signals that reach a receiver may come with noise or may be interfered with during transmission. Because exchange of molecules is discrete, diffusion slow, and chemical signals relatively stable, achievable data transmission rates in diffusive communication are low and show high latency [10,11] . In addition, remaining signaling molecules can cause intersymbol interference [11,85] .…”

“…[3][4][5][6][7][8] In its simplest form, communication encompasses multiple entities sending (= transmitting), receiving, and processing information, [9] in the presence of noise or interference (Figure 1). [10,11] Generally, signals can be non-specific, slowly transmitted, decay rapidly with distance, and may be difficult to interpret. These inherent limitations require general design solutions, many of which are illustrated by how robots, electronic devices, or biological organisms are structured.…”

Models of Chemical Communication for Micro/Nanoparticles

“…An approach to achieving regulation could be to employ enzyme inhibitors and activators as messengers in the communication process. Third, we foresee the need for collaboration between experimentalists and theoreticians to accomplish mathematical modeling and parametrization of communication processes . And finally, future studies should evolve toward the realization of practical applications in different areas (Figure ).…”

Universal Transceivers: Opportunities and Future Directions for the Internet of Everything (IoE)

“…This has led to the exploration of nanomaterials-based approaches for the design of MC-Tx/Rxs, which focus on chemically stable and biocompatible materials for sensing and releasing molecules, such as GRMs, CNTs, and silicon nanowires (SiNWs) [47]. While synthetic biology provides an alternative for designing biocompatible MC-Tx/Rxs [49], [50], it faces challenges concerning applicability and integration into functional systems [51], [52]. Thus, in the following, we will review the potential of nanomaterials, particularly GRMs, in designing and implementing practical MC-Tx/Rxs within the IoBNT framework.…”