Physiological Search for Quantum Biological Sensing Effects Based on the Wigner–Yanase Connection between Coherence and Uncertainty

Abstract

AbstractA fundamental concept of quantum physics, the Wigner–Yanase information, is used here as a measure of quantum coherence in spin‐dependent radical‐pair reactions pertaining to biological magnetic sensing. This measure is connected to the uncertainty of the reaction yields and, further, to the statistics of a cellular receptor‐ligand system used to biochemically convey magnetic‐field changes. Measurable physiological quantities, such as the number of receptors and fluctuations in ligand concentration, are shown to reflect the introduced Wigner–Yanase measure of singlet‐triplet coherence. A quantum‐biological uncertainty relation connecting the product of a biological resource and a biological figure of merit with the Wigner–Yanase coherence is arrived at. This approach can serve as a general search for quantum‐coherent effects within cellular environments.