Dead vs Alive Quantum Biology: Magnetoreception Enabled via Non-Markovianity

新兴的量子生物学领域表明，自然界可能利用非平凡的量子效应，在复杂的生命系统中实现经典上无法实现的优势。鸟类指南针，它允许候鸟在广阔的距离上航行，被认为是量子效应支撑生物学的一个主要例子。有证据表明，这种感觉来源于鸟类眼睛中一种叫做隐色素的蛋白质中发生的光激活化学反应。该反应引发了两个“自由基”分子中的电子和磁核的自旋的磁场敏感动力学，这是一种内在的量子特性。因此，自由基对的重组以改革蛋白质的静止状态被认为获得磁场敏感性。然而，许多悬而未决的问题仍然有待解决，以了解精致的，可能是量子增强，敏感性的性质和解锁其设计原则。目前的大多数模型的鸟类指南针处理的动力学隐花色素孤立。然而，最近的研究表明，孤立隐花色素对弱磁场的反应可能不足以支持鸟类导航。我们认为，这种“相互作用强度差距”的关键可以在蛋白质的环境中找到。具体而言，我们建议，经常被忽视的开放性的自旋系统的强耦合结构化的环境可以提供一个必要的灵敏度提升，通过驱动和噪声的贡献，所造成的生理运动的蛋白质在相关的时间尺度磁感受，并介导通过自由基间的相互作用。这种增强原理与减少环境相互作用的共同努力形成鲜明对比，在大多数人造量子技术的情况下，环境相互作用被视为有害的。然而，对于磁感受，我们的初步结果表明，与直觉相反，环境本身可能被用来加强和恢复量子动力学-特别是如果与环境的相互作用具有有限的记忆时间我们将开发新的理论和计算上易于处理的方法，以解锁由环境耦合驱动的非马尔可夫自旋动力学的潜力，并系统地评估生物学的基对的大型复杂系统。我们将采用基于波函数的方法，结合高性能和GPU计算技术，模拟一个前所未有的机制，阐明现实系统的非马尔可夫增强磁场灵敏度。我们的努力将最终在一个通用的，用户友好的软件包，使复杂的自旋动力学模拟的科学界。我们得出的见解将取代目前过于简化的理论研究，并解决目前在隐花色素生物环境之外进行的实验预测磁场敏感性不足的困境，从而为生物磁敏感性开辟新的范式。这个跨学科的研究计划不仅将通过突出生命系统环境的功能作用来邀请量子生物学的“活”治疗，而且还提供了对化学中普遍存在的自旋动力学的基本理解。这些潜在的磁场敏感化学反应中的一些可能对生物学和健康（例如神经发生、脂质过氧化）产生影响，促使重新评估暴露指南，并产生控制新型医学治疗反应的工具。此外，通过向自然学习并对其进行改进，可以找到用于操纵量子效应的凝聚相技术的设计原理，例如利用噪声作为资源的量子传感器。这将在本研究项目中通过开发自由基反应的非马尔可夫开放量子系统处理来解决，该系统通过先进的数值方法来促进自由基运动和复杂性。

The emerging field of quantum biology suggests that nature may utilise non-trivial quantum effects to realize a classically unattainable advantage in the complex systems of life.The avian compass, which allows migratory birds to navigate over vast distances, is thought to be a prime example where quantum effects underpin biology. Evidence implies that this sense originates from a light-activated chemical reaction taking place in a protein called cryptochrome, located in the bird's eye. The reaction initiates magnetic field sensitive dynamics of spins, an intrinsic quantum property, of electrons and magnetic nuclei in two "radical" molecules. Consequently, the recombination of the radical pair to reform the protein's resting state is thought to acquire magnetic field sensitivity. However, many open questions remain to be solved to understand the exquisite, possibly quantum enhanced, sensitivity of nature and unlock its design principles.The majority of current models of the avian compass treat the dynamics of the cryptochrome in isolation. However, recent studies show that the response of an isolated cryptochrome to weak magnetic fields is likely insufficient to support bird navigation. We suggest that the key to this 'interaction strength gap' can be found in the protein's environment. Specifically, we propose that the oft-neglected openness of the spin system to the strongly coupled structured environment can provide an essential sensitivity boost through driving and noise contributions, caused by the physiological motion of the protein at timescales relevant to magnetoreception, and mediated via inter-radical interactions. This enhancement principle contrasts with common efforts to reduce environment interaction, which is seen as detrimental, in most instances of man-made quantum technology. However, for magnetoreception, our preliminary results suggest that, counterintuitively, the environment itself may be utilized to reinforce and revive quantum dynamics - in particular if the interaction with the environment has a finite memory time (non-Markovianity).We will develop new theory and computationally tractable approaches to unlock the potential of non-Markovian spin dynamics driven by environmental coupling, and to systematically assess the large complex systems of radical-pairs of biology. We will employ wave-function-based methodology in tandem with high-performance and GPU computing techniques to simulate a never before accessible regime that will elucidate non-Markovian enhanced magnetic field sensitivity for realistic systems. Our efforts will culminate in a general, user-friendly software package enabling complex spin dynamics simulations for the scientific community. Our derived insight will supersede current theoretical studies that are oversimplified and resolve the dilemma that current experiments on cryptochrome outside of its biological setting predict inadequate magnetic field sensitivity, thereby opening a new paradigm for biological magnetosensitivity.This interdisciplinary research program will not only invite a "live" treatment of quantum biology by highlighting a functional role of the living system environment, but also provide essential understanding of spin dynamics ubiquitous in chemistry. Several of these potentially magnetic field sensitive chemical reactions could have implications in biology and health (e.g. neurogenesis, lipid peroxidation), motivating a reassessment of exposure guidelines, and generating tools to control reactions in novel medical treatments. Furthermore, by learning from nature and improving upon it, design principles may be found for condensed phase technology manipulating quantum effects, such as quantum sensors that utilize noise as a resource. This will be addressed in the present research project by developing non-Markovian open quantum system treatments of radical reactions accounting for radical motion and complexity, facilitated by advanced numerical approaches.