Towards a thermodynamics of living matter

We consider the fundamental equation of the thermodynamics of antidissipative systems, in which the internal work connected with the production of entropy is compensated by the external work on the system. Living systems are open antidissipative ones, in which this compensation is realized by the chemical work of the exchange of substances. Moreover, living matter is found in a stable nonequilibrium state. © 1990 Plenum Publishing Corporation.