Microtubules - Electric Oscillating Structures in Living Cells (Google Workshop on Quantum Biology)

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Google Workshop on Quantum Biology Microtubules -- Electric Oscillating Structures in Living Cells Presented by Jiří Pokorný October 22, 2010 ABSTRACT Fröhlich formulated hypothesis of coherent electromagnetic activity in biological systems. The full featured Fröhlich's system is described by two complementary nonlinear models: the one with spectral energy channeling and energy condensation in the lowest frequency mode, the other with creation of a ferroelectric state and a potential valley for oscillation amplitudes. Electric and electromagnetic oscillations in various biological systems were found in a wide frequency range from acoustic to visible and UV bands but their internal physical mechanisms are rather unclear. We proved that electromagnetic oscillations at 8 MHz are generated by microtubules in cells (Pokorný et al., Electro- Magnetobiol. 20, 2001, 371). As the greatest activity of living cells is exhibited in the M phase the measurements were performed on synchronous cells in this phase. Cold-sensitive β tubulin mutans tub2-401 and tub2-406 of S. cerevisiae were used. Two types of sensors were designed. A sensor with two evaporated gold strips 400 μm wide with a gap 8 μm between them was prepared on alumina substrate. The other sensor with 7 pairs of gold strips 10 μm wide and gaps from 2 to 10 μm was prepared on silicon substrate. Synchronization was achieved by warming the cell suspension to permissive temperature. Control experiments with empty sensor, sensor with sucrose solution, and with wild yeast cells were used. The periods with great electromagnetic activity coincide with formation of the mitotic spindle, with the processess of late prometaphase and metaphase, anaphase A, and anaphase B. The coincidence was revealed by comparison of electro-magnetic measurement results with immunofluorescence microscopy pictures of the M phase development of the same cells. Mitochondria and microtubules are "cooperating" structures in living cells. A zone of a strong static electric field and a proton space charge layer around a mitochondrion, and liberation of energy non utilized for ATP and GTP (adenosine and guanosine triphosphate) production may have an impact on cellular order and cellular activity. The mitochondria occupy about 22 % of the cellular volume and their static electric fields and their proton space charge layers are distributed in the rest of the cell. The strong static electric field adjusts nonlinear conditions in the cytoskeleton and together with the proton space charge layer provides a high level ordering of cellular water (the basic ordering of water -- the interfacial ordering -- depends on surface charges of cellular structures). Mitochondria are aligned along microtubules, whose oscillations are excited by the non utilized energy liberated from mitochondria in a random form. Due to nonlinear mechanism oscillations in microtubules may be converted from random to coherent form. As the mictrotubules are electrically polar, electric (electromagnetic) field is generated. Due to high level of water ordering damping of microtubule oscillations by the surrounding medium is low. Intrinsic conductivity properties of microtubules are not disturbed and the quality factor of the microtubule oscillator is high. The coherence time of the order of magnitude 0.1 -- 1 μs in the frequency range 5 -- 15 MHz may be assessed. The microtubule electromagnetic field and its coherence may play a specific role in biological activity and in cancer transformation. About the speaker: Ing. Jiří Pokorný, Dr.Sc. was born in Czechoslovakia (Central Europe) in 1932. He graduated at the Czech Technical University, Prague in 1956, then was affiliated with the Inst. Radio Eng. Electronics Acad. Sciences, and completed postgraduate study (CSc) in 1961. He carried out research on electromagnetic theory and wave propagation, and microwave semiconductor devices. From 1982 to 1997 he was affiliated with the Faculty of Math. and Phys., Charles Univ., Prague (research on coherent states in biological systems, their electromagnetic activity and role in cancer transformation). In 1994 he was awarded Doctor of Sciences degree (Dr.Sc.). Since 1997 up to now he has continued in the research in Inst. Photonics and Electronics ASCR (from 2008 emeritus scientist). He is author or coauthor of about 150 scientific papers, and of two monographs (the second - Pokorný J., Wu T.-M. Biophysical Aspects of Coherence and Biological Order. Springer, Academia 1998). Since 1987 he organized 8 international meetings on biophysical (electromagnetic) aspects of biological activity and cancer transformation of cells; the last one in 2008 (Symposium Biophysical Aspects of Cancer -- Electromagnetic Mechanisms).