Bordonaro Michael
Geisinger Commonwealth School of Medicine, 525 Pine Street, Scranton, PA 18509, USA.
Biosystems. 2019 Apr;178:16-24. doi: 10.1016/j.biosystems.2019.01.010. Epub 2019 Jan 26.
Quantum-mediated effects have been observed in biological systems. We have previously discussed basis-dependent quantum selection as a mechanism for directed adaptive mutation, a process in which selective pressure specifically induces mutation in those genes involved in the adaptive response. Tumor progression in cancer easily lends itself to the adaptive evolutionary perspective, as the Darwinian combination of heritable variations together with selection of the better proliferating variants are believed to play a major role in multistep carcinogenesis. Adaptive mutation may play a role in carcinogenesis; accordingly, we propose that the principles of quantum biology are involved in directed adaptive mutation processes that promote tumor formation. In this paper, we discuss the intersection between quantum mechanics, biology, adaptive evolution, and cancer, and present general models by which adaptive mutation may influence neoplastic initiation and progression. As a potential theoretical and experimental model, we use colorectal cancer. Our model of "quantum cancer" suggests experiments to evaluate directed adaptive mutation in tumorigenesis, and may have important implications for cancer therapeutics.
在生物系统中已观察到量子介导效应。我们之前曾讨论过基于基础的量子选择作为定向适应性突变的一种机制，在这个过程中，选择压力会特异性地诱导参与适应性反应的那些基因发生突变。癌症中的肿瘤进展很容易从适应性进化的角度来理解，因为遗传变异的达尔文式组合以及对增殖能力更强的变体的选择被认为在多步骤致癌过程中起主要作用。适应性突变可能在致癌过程中发挥作用；因此，我们提出量子生物学原理参与了促进肿瘤形成的定向适应性突变过程。在本文中，我们讨论量子力学、生物学、适应性进化和癌症之间的交叉点，并提出适应性突变可能影响肿瘤起始和进展的一般模型。作为一个潜在的理论和实验模型，我们使用结直肠癌。我们的“量子癌症”模型提出了评估肿瘤发生过程中定向适应性突变的实验，并且可能对癌症治疗具有重要意义。
