Scarcity of scale-free topology is universal across biochemical networks

Named article in Nature (3/22/21) applying the statistical methodology of Broido and Clauset. Excerpt from the Abstract:

"The results confirm no more than a few biochemical networks are any more than super-weakly scale-free. Additionally, we test the distinguishability of individual and ecosystem-level biochemical networks and show there is no sharp transition in the structure of biochemical networks across these levels of organization moving from individuals to ecosystems. This result holds across different network projections. Our results indicate that while biochemical networks are not scale-free, they nonetheless exhibit common structure across different levels of organization, independent of the projection chosen, suggestive of shared organizing principles across all biochemical networks."

They conclude:

"To understand complex interacting systems, such as the systems of reactions underlying all life on Earth, it may be the case that we should forgo the allure of simple, singular models with only one coarse-grained description. Instead, to characterize living processes, it may be time to adopt and develop theory for statistical analyses over many projections in tandem."