A General Model for the Origin of Allometric Scaling Laws in Biology
Geofv B. West,
James H. Brown,
*
Brian
J. Enquist
Allometric scaling relations, including the 3/4 power
law for metabolic rates, are characteristic of all organisms and are here derived from a general model that describes how essential materials are transported through space-filling fractal networks of
branching tubes. The model assumes that the energy dissipated is
minimized and that the terminal tubes do not vary with body size. It
provides a complete analysis of scaling relations for mammalian
circulatory systems that are in agreement with data. More generally,
the model predicts structural and functional properties of vertebrate
cardiovascular and respiratory systems, plant vascular systems, insect
tracheal tubes, and other distribution networks.
G. B. West, Theoretical Division, T-8, Mail Stop B285, Los Alamos
National Laboratory, Los Alamos, NM 87545, and The Santa Fe Institute,
1399 Hyde Park Road, Santa Fe, NM 87501, USA.
J. H. Brown and B. J. Enquist, Department of Biology, University of New
Mexico, Albuquerque, NM 87131, and The Santa Fe Institute, 1399 Hyde
Park Road, Santa Fe, NM 87501, USA.
*
To whom correspondence should be addressed. E-mail:
jhbrown{at}unm.edu
