The Hille equation relates the maximum ionic conductance of an ion channel to its length and radius (or diameter), with the commonly used version implicitly takes into account a hemispherical cap.[1] As it is ultimately based on a macroscopic continuum model, it does not take into account molecular interactions, and real conductances are often several times less than the predicted maximal flux.
Assumptions and Derivations
[edit]Equation
[edit]![](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/e/e1/HilleEqnParameters.svg/220px-HilleEqnParameters.svg.png)
The Hille equation predicts the following maximum conductance for a pore with length , radius , in a solvent with resistivity :
Rearranging the terms, the maximal flux based on length and diameter can be shown to be:
Physical Implications
[edit]References
[edit]