Fock spaces for modeling macromolecular complexes

Large macromolecular complexes play a fundamental role in how cells function. Here I describe a Fock space formalism for mathematically modeling these complexes. Specifically, this formalism allows ensembles of complexes to be defined in terms of elementary molecular ``building blocks’’ and ``assembly rules.’’ Such definitions avoid the massive redundancy inherent in standard representations, in which all possible complexes are manually enumerated. Methods for systematically computing ensembles of complexes from a list of components and interaction rules are described. I also show how this formalism readily accommodates coarse-graining. Finally, I introduce diagrammatic techniques that greatly facilitate the application of this formalism to both equilibrium and non-equilibrium biochemical systems.