Waiting time distributions for clusters of complex molecules

Waiting time distributions are in the core of theories for a large variety of subjects ranging from the analysis of patch clamp records to stochastic excitable systems. Here, we present a novel exact method for the calculation of waiting time distributions for state transitions of complex molecules with independent subunit dynamics. The absorbing state is a specific set of subunit states, i.e. is defined on the molecule level. Consequently, we formulate the problem as a random walk in the molecule state space. The subunits can posses an arbitrary number of states and any topology of transitions between them. The method circumvents problems arising from combinatorial explosion due to subunit coupling and requires solutions of the subunit master equation only.