Terahertz radiation induces non-thermal structural changes associated with Fröhlich condensation in a protein crystal

Structural Dynamics
Ida V LundholmGergely Katona

Abstract

Whether long-range quantum coherent states could exist in biological systems, and beyond low-temperature regimes where quantum physics is known to be applicable, has been the subject to debate for decades. It was proposed by Fröhlich that vibrational modes within protein molecules can order and condense into a lowest-frequency vibrational mode in a process similar to Bose-Einstein condensation, and thus that macroscopic coherence could potentially be observed in biological systems. Despite the prediction of these so-called Fröhlich condensates almost five decades ago, experimental evidence thereof has been lacking. Here, we present the first experimental observation of Fröhlich condensation in a protein structure. To that end, and to overcome the challenges associated with probing low-frequency molecular vibrations in proteins (which has hampered understanding of their role in proteins' function), we combined terahertz techniques with a highly sensitive X-ray crystallographic method to visualize low-frequency vibrational modes in the protein structure of hen-egg white lysozyme. We found that 0.4 THz electromagnetic radiation induces non-thermal changes in electron density. In particular, we observed a local increase of electron...Continue Reading

References

Mar 28, 1977·Biochimica Et Biophysica Acta·J Saint-BlancardP Jollès
Jun 1, 1983·Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America·N GoT Nishikawa
Jun 24, 1999·Bioelectrochemistry and Bioenergetics·J Pokorný
Jan 22, 2002·Physical Review Letters·Aihua XieRobert H Austin
Sep 1, 1994·Acta Crystallographica. Section D, Biological Crystallography·UNKNOWN Collaborative Computational Project, Number 4
Oct 8, 2005·Journal of Computational Chemistry·David Van Der SpoelHerman J C Berendsen
Nov 21, 2007·Nature·Katherine A Henzler-WildmanDorothee Kern
Dec 20, 2008·Journal of Synchrotron Radiation·Beatriz G GuimarãesIgor Polikarpov
Feb 26, 2009·Journal of Synchrotron Radiation·Karthik S PaithankarElspeth F Garman
Feb 4, 2010·Acta Crystallographica. Section D, Biological Crystallography·Wolfgang Kabsch
Apr 29, 2010·Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America·Martin Karplus
Apr 5, 2011·Acta Crystallographica. Section D, Biological Crystallography·Martyn D WinnKeith S Wilson
Apr 5, 2011·Acta Crystallographica. Section D, Biological Crystallography·Garib N MurshudovAlexei A Vagin
Oct 19, 2011·Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America·Ken A DillJeremy D Schmit
Jan 17, 2014·Nature Communications·Gheorghe AcbasA G Markelz
Jun 4, 2014·Nature Communications·David A TurtonKlaas Wynne
Mar 1, 2008·Journal of Chemical Theory and Computation·Berk HessErik Lindahl

❮ Previous
Next ❯

Citations

Sep 5, 2018·Journal of Physics. Condensed Matter : an Institute of Physics Journal·Amir JalalinejadAchille Giacometti
Aug 17, 2016·Biochemical Society Transactions·Alistair V W NunnJimmy D Bell
Jan 23, 2020·Advanced Materials·Guillaume SchweicherYves H Geerts
Nov 7, 2019·Acta Crystallographica. Section A, Foundations and Advances·Maria Jose Garcia-Bonete, Gergely Katona
Apr 9, 2020·Structural Dynamics·Cecilia WickstrandRichard Neutze
Sep 3, 2020·The Review of Scientific Instruments·S SchewaM Roessle
Apr 30, 2016·Acta Crystallographica. Section A, Foundations and Advances·Gergely KatonaIda V Lundholm
Feb 16, 2017·Journal of Biological Physics·Jordane Preto
Oct 8, 2020·Electromagnetic Biology and Medicine·Vasiliy N Kadantsev, Alexey Goltsov
Apr 25, 2021·Biophysical Journal·Yuji TokunagaMasahiko Imashimizu

❮ Previous
Next ❯

Methods Mentioned

BETA
X-ray

Software Mentioned

SFALL
SCALEIT
COMSOL Multiphysics
CCP4
REFMAC5
Gromacs
SIGMAA
XDS

Related Concepts

Related Feeds

Bacterial Cell Wall Structure (ASM)

Bacterial cell walls are made of peptidoglycan (also called murein), which is made from polysaccharide chains cross-linked by unusual peptides containing D-amino acids. Here is the latest research on bacterial cell wall structures.

Bacterial Cell Wall Structure

Bacterial cell walls are made of peptidoglycan (also called murein), which is made from polysaccharide chains cross-linked by unusual peptides containing D-amino acids. Here is the latest research on bacterial cell wall structures.