To this day, the human mind remains one of the greatest enigmas of science. Despite remarkable advances in neuroscience, psychology, and physiology, the essence of consciousness, the subjective experience of being, continues to defy full understanding. We've mapped neural circuits, decoded aspects of cognition, and even simulated parts of brain function with artificial intelligence. Yet, the questions at the heart of our existence persist: What is the nature of awareness? Where does the sense of self come from? And how does the brain, a physical organ, give rise to thoughts, emotions, creativity, and intuition?
Our understanding of the brain has grown in leaps and bounds: We can now observe neuronal activity in real time, identify patterns associated with memory, emotion, and decision-making, and even manipulate these patterns with technology. But understanding the mechanics of the brain is not the same as grasping the experience of mind. To understand the mind we may have to change the way we think about cognition and awareness. A unicellular organim is aware of its surroundings and adjusts its swimming patterns or sexual behavior based on its environment, without having a brain or even a single neuron as it only consists of one cell. Information is thus being processed at a molecular level. What else can we learn from simple organisms to address our own subjective inner world, the "I" that observes, feels, dreams, and reflects. This realm remains beyond the reach of current scientific tools. It is this gap between the measurable and the experiential that continues to challenge not only scientists, but also philosophers, artists, and spiritual thinkers. As we unravel the layers of the quantum realm within simple organisms, we may find that understanding consciousness will require not only advances in science but a reimagining of how we define reality, identity, and existence itself.
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But for now, let's try to create these new tools required to bridge the gap between the measurable world and the experience of it.
Aromatic networks in protein architecture and their role in biological information processing and behavior
The nexus of quantum biology, cellular signaling, and neuroscience has raised compelling questions about the role of quantum processing in biological information processing and its implications in cognition and behavior.
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Recent studies suggest that quantum coherence and superradiance may underlie efficient signaling in diverse protein architectures - not just in the nervous system but across biological systems more broadly (Babcock 2024, Patwa 2024). This raises important questions about how quantum effects might influence functional biological processes. Protein structures such as microtubules, actomyosin networks, and other cytoskeletal components have been investigated for their potential quantum roles.
Neuronal microtubule cytoskeleton in green
https://researchfeatures.com/unlocking-molecular-mechanisms-tubulin-alzheimers-disease/
Microtubules are found in all eukaryotic cells and are well-known for their involvement in structural integrity, intracellular transport, and signal transduction. They have also been implicated in cognitive functions such as learning and memory in animal models (Uchida 2014, Dent 2017, Hosseini 2022), and their disruption is associated with neurodegenerative disorders like Alzheimer's disease (Fernandez 2020). Experimental work by Bandyopadhyay et al. has shown that microtubules can act as memory-switching devices in vitro, supporting their potential for information processing (Sahu 2013, Saxena 2020).
More broadly, Kurian and colleagues have proposed that organized aromatic amino acids like tryptophan networks, ubiquitous across many protein structures, can facilitate ultraviolet (UV) superradiance and coherent excitonic states, potentially enabling quantum information transfer in living systems (Babcock 2024, Patwa 2024). This mechanism may allow for the absorption, transfer, and emission of photons in a coordinated manner, enhancing the fidelity and efficiency of intracellular signaling. While these findings offer an intriguing link between quantum physics and biological function the biological significance of such effects remains to be fully demonstrated.
Tryptophan networks in microtubules.
Single-celled eukaryotic organisms like Tetrahymena thermophila are uniquely suited to probe the interface between quantum biology and behavior. Despite lacking a nervous system, these organisms exhibit surprisingly complex behaviors such as decision-making, learning, and memory (Brette 2021). Their cyotskeletal systems, particularly microtubules, have been implicated in regulating electrophysiological responses and intracellular communication. We thus hypothesize that organized tryptophan networks in Tetrahymena's microtubules may support coherent superradiant states that play a role in quantum information processing and behavioral decision-making.
Tetrahymena cell with green labeled microtubules.
RNA molecules interacting with protein architecture - the quantum genome
Epigenetics is the study of changes to gene expression without changing the DNA. Could a similar phenomenon exist in quantum information processing in protein architectures within cells? RNA interacting with microtubules and microtubule associated proteins (MAPs) forming phase separated condensates could influence quantum information processing and thus the cells and organisms behavior. ​​My background in noncoding RNA research during my PhD, and working on proteins interacting with RNA to regulate genes through phase separation (Oszuk et al. 2023, Overholt and Vancura et al, 2025 (under review)), set the perfect stage to investigate this work. This research is highly interdisciplinary, connecting neuroscience with RNA and quantum biology with the potential to greatly improve our understanding of cognition and consciousness. It's time for new frontiers, with one of them being quantum biology.