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Applied Sciences
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Quantum Cooperativity in Neural Signaling
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Quantum Cooperativity in Neural Signaling

A special issue of Applied Sciences (ISSN 2076-3417). This special issue belongs to the section "Quantum Science and Technology".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (1 July 2020) | Viewed by 12759

Special Issue Editor

Prof. Dr. Gustav Bernroider

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Guest Editor
Univ. of Salzburg, Department of Biosciences (retired), 5020 Salzburg, Austria
Interests: quantum dynamics and brain function; neural signalling; ion channels; molecular brain topology; dynamic chirality in neural membranes; electron transfer in ion-channels; comparative cognition; consciousness and higher level brain functions

Special Issue Information

The Special Issue on ‘Quantum Cooperativity in Neural Signalling’ investigates the possibility that quantum physical interactions instantiated at the sub-molecular and atomic scale within membrane channel proteins can play a functional role for brain signalling.

Dear Colleagues,

Brain function reaches far beyond computational and communication systems and goes beyond purely statistical correlations within task-related neural interactions. It has become apparent that the brain offers an ‘embodiment of mind and experience’ in a very special way and, in particular, there are physical properties in the brain that can possibly be addressed by this role. One still highly-debated assumption suggests that these physical properties may reside at the most radical level in physics at the quantum scale. This view is most notably motivated by i) some formal resemblance between quantum physical conceptions and ontological questions behind subject–object dualities in the cognitive sciences , ii) by a ‘quantum-like’ behaviour of signal dynamics at the cellular scale, and iii) by the detection of short-lived quantum coherences within the thermal environment of ion conduction. It is the third aspect that is at the centre of interest for the present Special Issue on quantum cooperativity in neural signalling. In particular, this issue intends to explore the possible functional role of quantum coherences during selective ion conduction, and the interplay of ion conduction states with the electronic and vibrational environment provided by the channel protein, and finally the question of how quantum properties could be ‘witnessed’ by, or spread into macroscopic observables at the thermodynamic limit characterizing neural signals.

Increasing insight into these questions can possibly inspire new impulses for brain science and also provide new ideas regarding technical approaches for AI implementations. With your expertise in this field, I think you could make an important contribution to these challenging topics.

Prof. Dr. Gustav Bernroider
Guest Editor

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Applied Sciences is an international peer-reviewed open access semimonthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2400 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • ion channel atomic states
  • quantum coherence at warm temperatures
  • entanglement
  • quantum cooperativity
  • molecular thermodynamics in membrane signals
  • cooperativity between voltage gated ion channels
  • electron transfer and noncovalent interactions in channel proteins
  • quantum trajectories in biomolecules
  • nanoscale excitons in proteins

Published Papers (3 papers)

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Research

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17 pages, 2475 KiB  
Article
Quantum Mechanical Coherence of K+ Ion Wave Packets Increases Conduction in the KcsA Ion Channel
by Johann Summhammer, Georg Sulyok and Gustav Bernroider
Appl. Sci. 2020, 10(12), 4250; https://doi.org/10.3390/app10124250 - 21 Jun 2020
Cited by 7 | Viewed by 2101
Abstract
We simulate the transmission of K+ ions through the KcsA potassium ion channel filter region at physiological temperatures, employing classical molecular dynamics (MD) at the atomic scale together with a quantum mechanical version of MD simulation (QMD), treating single ions as quantum [...] Read more.
We simulate the transmission of K+ ions through the KcsA potassium ion channel filter region at physiological temperatures, employing classical molecular dynamics (MD) at the atomic scale together with a quantum mechanical version of MD simulation (QMD), treating single ions as quantum wave packets. We provide a direct comparison between both concepts, embedding the simulations into identical force fields and thermal fluctuations. The quantum simulations permit the estimation of coherence times and wave packet dispersions of a K+ ion over a range of 0.5 nm (a range that covers almost 50% of the filter domains longitudinal extension). We find that this observed extension of particle delocalization changes the mean orientation of the coordinating carbonyl oxygen atoms significantly, transiently suppressing their ‘caging action’ responsible for selective ion coordination. Compared to classical MD simulations, this particular quantum effect allows the K+ ions to ‘escape’ more easily from temporary binding sites provided by the surrounding filter atoms. To further elucidate the role of this observation for ion conduction rates, we compare the temporal pattern of single conduction events between classical MD and quantum QMD simulations at a femto-sec time scale. A finding from both approaches is that ion permeation follows a very irregular time pattern, involving flushes of permeation interrupted by non-conductive time intervals. However, as compared with classical behavior, the QMD simulation shortens non-conductive time by more than a half. As a consequence, and given the same force-fields, the QMD-simulated ion current appears to be considerably stronger as compared with the classical current. To bring this result in line with experimentally observed ion currents and the predictions based on Nernst–Planck theories, the conclusion is that a transient short time quantum behavior of permeating ions can successfully compromise high conduction rates with ion selectivity in the filter of channel proteins. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Quantum Cooperativity in Neural Signaling)
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14 pages, 267 KiB  
Article
A Quantum-Like Model of Information Processing in the Brain
by Andrei Khrennikov and Masanari Asano
Appl. Sci. 2020, 10(2), 707; https://doi.org/10.3390/app10020707 - 19 Jan 2020
Cited by 17 | Viewed by 4943
Abstract
We present the quantum-like model of information processing by the brain’s neural networks. The model does not refer to genuine quantum processes in the brain. In this model, uncertainty generated by the action potential of a neuron is represented as quantum-like superposition of [...] Read more.
We present the quantum-like model of information processing by the brain’s neural networks. The model does not refer to genuine quantum processes in the brain. In this model, uncertainty generated by the action potential of a neuron is represented as quantum-like superposition of the basic mental states corresponding to a neural code. Neuron’s state space is described as complex Hilbert space (quantum information representation). The brain’s psychological functions perform self-measurements by extracting concrete answers to questions (solutions of problems) from quantum information states. This extraction is modeled in the framework of open quantum systems theory. In this way, it is possible to proceed without appealing to the state’s collapse. Dynamics of the state of psychological function F is described by the quantum master equation. Its stationary states represent classical statistical mixtures of possible outputs of F (decisions). This model can be used for justification of quantum-like modeling cognition and decision-making. The latter is supported by plenty of statistical data collected in cognitive psychology. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Quantum Cooperativity in Neural Signaling)

Review

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18 pages, 305 KiB  
Review
Entanglement and Phase-Mediated Correlations in Quantum Field Theory. Application to Brain-Mind States
by Shantena A. Sabbadini and Giuseppe Vitiello
Appl. Sci. 2019, 9(15), 3203; https://doi.org/10.3390/app9153203 - 06 Aug 2019
Cited by 25 | Viewed by 5347
Abstract
The entanglement phenomenon plays a central role in quantum optics and in basic aspects of quantum mechanics and quantum field theory. We review the dissipative quantum model of brain and the role of the entanglement in the brain-mind activity correlation and in the [...] Read more.
The entanglement phenomenon plays a central role in quantum optics and in basic aspects of quantum mechanics and quantum field theory. We review the dissipative quantum model of brain and the role of the entanglement in the brain-mind activity correlation and in the formation of assemblies of coherently-oscillating neurons, which are observed to appear in different regions of the cortex by use of EEG, ECoG, fNMR, and other observational methods in neuroscience. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Quantum Cooperativity in Neural Signaling)
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