Challenges
Datasets
Workspaces
Papers
Discussions
Leaderboard
Log inSign up
Challenges
Datasets
Workspaces
Papers
Discussions
Leaderboard
Blog
Job Board
Q3AS

© 2026 Aqora Quantum S.A.S.

TermsPrivacyLegal Notice

Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences

QUANTUM VARIABLES AND THE ACTION PRINCIPLE

Julian Schwinger

Published Jul 1, 1961• 24 citations
Publisher

Abstract

The sequential production of cell types during neural development is controlled by temporal identity transcription factors, and heterochronic expression of these factors in progenitors reprograms developmental potential and promotes the ...Temporal identity factors are sufficient to reprogram developmental competence of neural progenitors and shift cell fate output, but whether they can also reprogram the identity of terminally differentiated cells is unknown. To address this question, we ...

DOI
10.1073/pnas.47.7.1075

Related papers

INTENSITY-DEPENDENT ABSORPTION OF LIGHT

E. U. Condon

The sequential production of cell types during neural development is controlled by temporal identity transcription factors, and heterochronic expression of these factors in progenitors reprograms developmental potential and promotes the ...Temporal identity factors are sufficient to reprogram developmental competence of neural progenitors and shift cell fate output, but whether they can also reprogram the identity of terminally differentiated cells is unknown. To address this question, we ...

Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences•Sep 1, 1964•18 citations

Quantum Neural Oscillators and Temporal Wave Alignment: A Conceptual Framework for Difference-Sensitive Quantum Learning

Michael Warrington

•Jan 1, 2025•0 citations

Timing Channels with Multiple Identical Quanta

Christopher Rose, Shahzad I. Mian, Ruochen Song

We consider mutual information between release times and capture times for a set of M identical quanta traveling independently from a source to a target. The quanta are immediately captured upon arrival, first-passage times are assumed independent and identically distributed and the quantum emission times are constrained by a deadline. The primary application area is intended to be inter/intracellular molecular signaling in biological systems whereby an organelle, cell or group of cells must deliver some message (such as transcription or developmental instructions) over distance with reasonable certainty to another organelles, cells or group of cells. However, the model can also be applied to communications systems wherein indistinguishable signals have random transit latencies.

arXiv:1208.1070•Aug 6, 2012•10 citations

QUANTUM GENETICS When Your Cells Remember What You Never Lived and Predict What Has Not Happened Yet

mohamed kamal arafa el-rakhawi

QUANTUM GENETICS When Your Cells Remember What You Never Lived and Predict What Has Not Happened Yet

•Aug 25, 2026•0 citations

An Open Quantum System Approach to Bicoid Gradient Dynamics

Irfan Lone

A prototypical morphogen gradient that plays a key role in the early embryonic development of fruit flies, by providing positional information to cells, is that of the transcription factor Bicoid (Bcd). Recently a one-dimensional quantum walk model has been utilised to explain its multiple dynamic modes observed through fluorescence correlation spectroscopy (FCS) studies using a closed quantum system approach. In this work we use an open quantum system approach to the dynamics of the Bcd gradient formation and show that exactly the same dynamics are obtained through this more rigorous analysis. We then use the thus obtained expression for the fast dynamic modes to explain the Bcd transcription factor search times for binding to the promoter regions along the DNA. Specifically, we find that the large values of diffusivity allowed by quantum mechanics can avoid the paradox of faster-than-diffusion association rates without any need for the transcription factor to constantly alternate between 1D and 3D diffusion-based search processes. This might help explain the fast and precise transcriptional response elicited by such factors. We conclude that, since many transcription factors share a common search strategy for target gene regulatory regions, our mechanism may have a wide range of applicability.

•Sep 24, 2024•0 citations

QUANTUM VARIABLES AND THE ACTION PRINCIPLE

Julian Schwinger

World Scientific series in 20th century physics•May 1, 2000•1 citation
The sequential production of cell types during neural development is controlled by temporal identity transcription factors, and heterochronic expression of these factors in progenitors reprograms developmental potential and promotes the ...Temporal identity factors are sufficient to reprogram developmental competence of neural progenitors and shift cell fate output, but whether they can also reprogram the identity of terminally differentiated cells is unknown. To address this question, we ...
We consider mutual information between release times and capture times for a set of M identical quanta traveling independently from a source to a target. The quanta are immediately captured upon arrival, first-passage times are assumed independent and identically distributed and the quantum emission times are constrained by a deadline. The primary application area is intended to be inter/intracellular molecular signaling in biological systems whereby an organelle, cell or group of cells must deliver some message (such as transcription or developmental instructions) over distance with reasonable certainty to another organelles, cells or group of cells. However, the model can also be applied to communications systems wherein indistinguishable signals have random transit latencies.
A prototypical morphogen gradient that plays a key role in the early embryonic development of fruit flies, by providing positional information to cells, is that of the transcription factor Bicoid (Bcd). Recently a one-dimensional quantum walk model has been utilised to explain its multiple dynamic modes observed through fluorescence correlation spectroscopy (FCS) studies using a closed quantum system approach. In this work we use an open quantum system approach to the dynamics of the Bcd gradient formation and show that exactly the same dynamics are obtained through this more rigorous analysis. We then use the thus obtained expression for the fast dynamic modes to explain the Bcd transcription factor search times for binding to the promoter regions along the DNA. Specifically, we find that the large values of diffusivity allowed by quantum mechanics can avoid the paradox of faster-than-diffusion association rates without any need for the transcription factor to constantly alternate between 1D and 3D diffusion-based search processes. This might help explain the fast and precise transcriptional response elicited by such factors. We conclude that, since many transcription factors share a common search strategy for target gene regulatory regions, our mechanism may have a wide range of applicability.