Figure 4.

Channel density affects the trade-off between information processing and metabolic efficiency. As compartments increase in size from 1 to 300 μm², the information rates they achieve increase but metabolic efficiency drops for a given channel density. Voltage-gated Na⁺ and K⁺ channel densities ranged from a quarter of to four times the density of those found in the squid giant axon. Colors indicate compartment size while symbols indicate the density of the voltage-gated ion channels.