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Can a hybrid chemical-ferromagnetic model of the avian compass explain its outstanding sensitivity to magnetic noise?

Kirill V Kavokin
Published in: PloS one (2017)
While many properties of the magnetic compass of migratory birds are satisfactory explained within the chemical model of magnetoreception, its extreme sensitivity to radio-frequency magnetic fields remains a mystery. Apparently, this difficulty could be overcome if the magnetoreceptor model were augmented with a magnetite nanoparticle, which would amplify the magnetic field at the position of the magneto-sensitive cryptochrome molecule. However, comparison of the radio-frequency power used in the experiment with intrinsic magnetization noise of such a particle, estimated from the theory of fluctuations, shows that the required sensitivity cannot be reached with realistic parameters of iron-oxide nanocrystals.
Keyphrases
  • iron oxide
  • molecularly imprinted
  • room temperature
  • climate change
  • mass spectrometry
  • quantum dots
  • ionic liquid
  • energy transfer