Ion channels play a key role in regulating cell behavior and in electrical signaling. In these settings, polar and charged functional groups, as well as protein response, compensate for dehydration in an ion-dependent way, giving rise to the ion selective transport critical to the operation of cells. Dehydration, though, yields...
Kramers’ theory frames chemical reaction rates in solution as reactants overcoming a barrier in the presence of friction and noise. For weak coupling to the solution, the reaction rate is limited by the rate at which the solution can restore equilibrium after a subset of reactants have surmounted the barrier...