Quantum Mechanics in Bacterial Proteins?
When people make components, structures, and so forth, they design them not only for specific purposes, but they also plan ahead for various contingencies. Everything must be in place and fully functional at once or it does not do anyone much good. Green sulfur bacteria use photosynthesis to obtain nourishment from light, but they must carefully regulate the amount of oxygen so that too much does not wreck the system. Researchers were amazed that quantum mechanics are involved in the process.
Green sulfur bacteria image credit: Wikimedia Commons / KOchstudiO / PD |
Researchers have found a dimmer switch inside a protein. It tunes the protein’s configuration to take advantage of quantum mechanics during photosynthesis. Two parallels with human engineering leave no doubts about the engineered origins of this light collector.University of Chicago scientists found an elegant sensor connected to the dimmer switch. Two critical chemical parts of the protein together act “as a trigger,” according to University of Chicago news.
To read the rest, see "Bacterial Proteins Use Quantum Mechanics".