Spiking Neurons Derived from Proteinoid and Bacteriorhodopsin

Area of Science:

• Biomolecular engineering
• Neuromorphic computing
• Molecular computing

Background:

• Neuromorphic computing aims to mimic the human brain's structure and function.
• Biomolecular systems offer potential for novel computing paradigms due to their unique properties.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate proteinoid-bacteriorhodopsin complexes as biomolecular spiking neurons.
• To explore their photoresponsive behavior for neuromorphic applications.

Main Methods:

• Integration of bacteriorhodopsin with self-assembled proteinoid structures.
• Measurement of electrical activity and photoresponse.
• Wavelength-dependent optical stimulation and temporal analysis.
• Random walk computations to assess spatiotemporal patterns.

Main Results:

• Proteinoid-bacteriorhodopsin complexes exhibit significantly greater electrical activity (10.77 ± 2.21 mV) than proteinoids alone (4.34 ± 4.47 mV).
• Complexes show wavelength-dependent responses to 5 Hz optical stimulation, with green light (≈ 520 nm) yielding the strongest amplitude (7.31 ± 1.49 mV).
• Stable oscillatory mechanisms with consistent periodicity (≈ 645 s) were observed across wavelengths, and distinct spatiotemporal patterns emerged in random walk computations.

Conclusions:

• Proteinoid-bacteriorhodopsin complexes are promising candidates for bioinspired computing.
• These complexes demonstrate potential for developing light-controlled molecular information systems and neuromorphic applications.