Quantum Biology Review Suggests Protein Networks And Quantum Sensing Open New Paths For Biology

Insider Brief

• A Howard University-led review examines how quantum effects in protein networks could influence biological processes and advance quantum sensing in cells.
• Studies surveyed include collective light emission in protein fibers at room temperature and protein movements that support quantum tunneling in enzyme reactions.
• Quantum sensors have been used to map cancer-related proteins and measure heat transport within cells, while researchers seek stronger connections between laboratory findings and biological functions.
• The histogram charts the distribution by publication date of nearly 600 references covered in the Quantum Biology 2.0 review article in Protein Science. (Quantum Biology Laboratory: Margaret Christ and Philip Kurian)

One of the hot-button topics in quantum science — and I have the emails to prove it — is whether quantum effects exist in the body, which traditionally has been thought to be too warm and too wet to nurture notoriously sensitive quantum phenomena.

Now, a new review led by Howard University researchers suggests that quantum effects in protein networks could help explain how living systems move energy and process information, while opening paths to more sensitive biological measurements.