A quantum mechanical approach to random X chromosome inactivation

Rodrigo Lobato; Rodrigo Lobato

doi:10.3934/biophy.2021026

AIMS Biophysics

2021, Volume 8, Issue 4: 322-336. doi: 10.3934/biophy.2021026

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A quantum mechanical approach to random X chromosome inactivation

Rodrigo Lobato ^,

159 rue Archambault, L'assomption, Quebec, Canada

Received: 29 June 2021 Accepted: 29 September 2021 Published: 12 October 2021

The X chromosome inactivation is an essential mechanism in mammals' development, that despite having been investigated for 60 years, many questions about its choice process have yet to be fully answered. Therefore, a theoretical model was proposed here for the first time in an attempt to explain this puzzling phenomenon through a quantum mechanical approach. Based on previous data, this work theoretically demonstrates how a shared delocalized proton at a key base pair position could explain the random, instantaneous, and mutually exclusive nature of the choice process in X chromosome inactivation. The main purpose of this work is to contribute to a comprehensive understanding of the X inactivation mechanism with a model proposal that can complement the existent ones, along with introducing a quantum mechanical approach that could be applied to other cell differentiation mechanisms.
- X chromosome inactivation,
- chromosome pairing,
- quantum approach,
- i-motif,
- proton tunneling
Citation: Rodrigo Lobato. A quantum mechanical approach to random X chromosome inactivation[J]. AIMS Biophysics, 2021, 8(4): 322-336. doi: 10.3934/biophy.2021026

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Abstract

The X chromosome inactivation is an essential mechanism in mammals' development, that despite having been investigated for 60 years, many questions about its choice process have yet to be fully answered. Therefore, a theoretical model was proposed here for the first time in an attempt to explain this puzzling phenomenon through a quantum mechanical approach. Based on previous data, this work theoretically demonstrates how a shared delocalized proton at a key base pair position could explain the random, instantaneous, and mutually exclusive nature of the choice process in X chromosome inactivation. The main purpose of this work is to contribute to a comprehensive understanding of the X inactivation mechanism with a model proposal that can complement the existent ones, along with introducing a quantum mechanical approach that could be applied to other cell differentiation mechanisms.

Acknowledgments

I want to thank my wife, Sarah Godin-Blouin, for her thorough and continuous editing of this work.

Conflict of interest

The author declares no conflicts of interest in this paper.

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