Barvitenko N, Lawen A, Aslam M, Pantaleo A, Saldanha C, Skverchinskaya E, Regolini M, Tuszynski JA. Integration of intracellular signaling: Biological analogues of wires, processors and memories organized by a centrosome 3D reference system.
Biosystems 2018;
173:191-206. [PMID:
30142359 DOI:
10.1016/j.biosystems.2018.08.007]
[Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/30/2018] [Revised: 08/03/2018] [Accepted: 08/20/2018] [Indexed: 02/07/2023]
Abstract
BACKGROUND
Myriads of signaling pathways in a single cell function to achieve the highest spatio-temporal integration. Data are accumulating on the role of electromechanical soliton-like waves in signal transduction processes. Theoretical studies strongly suggest feasibility of both classical and quantum computing involving microtubules.
AIM
A theoretical study of the role of the complex composed of the plasma membrane and the microtubule-based cytoskeleton as a system that transmits, stores and processes information.
METHODS
Theoretical analysis presented here refers to (i) the Penrose-Hameroff theory of consciousness (Orchestrated Objective Reduction; Orch OR), (ii) the description of the centrosome as a reference system for construction of the 3D map of the cell proposed by Regolini, (iii) the Heimburg-Jackson model of the nerve pulse propagation along axons' lipid bilayer as soliton-like electro-mechanical waves.
RESULTS AND CONCLUSION
The ideas presented in this paper provide a qualitative model for the decision-making processes in a living cell undergoing a differentiation process.
OUTLOOK
This paper paves the way for the real-time live-cell observation of information processing by microtubule-based cytoskeleton and cell fate decision making.
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