Unconditional Cost, Conditional Benefit: A Bioenergetic Constraint on GPCR-Class Signalling as a Substrate for Reward-Like Computation in Unicellular Systems

Sidário Rodrigues Malheiros-junior

doi:10.5281/zenodo.21893704

August 11, 2026Open Access

Unconditional Cost, Conditional Benefit: A Bioenergetic Constraint on GPCR-Class Signalling as a Substrate for Reward-Like Computation in Unicellular Systems

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Key Points

This research explores whether GPCRs can underpin reward computation in unicellular systems by examining bioenergetic constraints.
Developed a population genetics model and Monte Carlo simulations to analyze bioenergetic accounting.
Assessed the viability of GPCR signaling costs within the cellular energy budget based on physiological copy numbers.
A complete GPCR signaling unit is feasible at approximately 0.2% of cellular energy budget.
In the absence of coupling to a necessary architecture, the net selection coefficient remains negative, hindering expensive signaling systems from evolving.
The unicellular GPCR systems known (Ste2/Ste3 in yeast and cAR1–4 in Dictyostelium) show maximum coupling from their origin, fulfilling the condition for fixation.

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Implication

A theoretical model analyzes the costs and benefits of GPCR signaling for reward-like processes in unicellular organisms, suggesting implications for evolutionary biology.

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Sidário Rodrigues Malheiros-junior (2026) studied this question.

synapsesocial.com/papers/6a7d76792b0e0cff3f63fc5b https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.21893704

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Unconditional Cost, Conditional Benefit: A Bioenergetic Constraint on GPCR-Class Signalling as a Substrate for Reward-Like Computation in Unicellular Systems

Key Points

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Implication

Abstract

Discussion

Cite This Study

Unconditional Cost, Conditional Benefit: A Bioenergetic Constraint on GPCR-Class Signalling as a Substrate for Reward-Like Computation in Unicellular Systems

Key Points

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Implication

Abstract

Discussion

Cite This Study

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