• Introduction  
• Reactive Oxidative Species and Ultra-weak Photon Emissions (UPE)
• UPEs and Microtubules
• UPEs and Neuronal Activity
• Concluding Remarks
• References

§Introduction  

        What if our current understanding of how neurons work is incomplete? What if our current understanding is holding us back from answering bigger questions of how our minds works and how our meta-cognitive experience manifests itself? Currently, the standard medical perspective views neurons as cells that use electrical charges to trigger the release of neurotransmitters from one synapse to the other. Accordingly, the chemicals being passed from neuron to neuron is the signal, and the electrical potentials generated are the trigger for their release. However, what if our neurons are not simply communicating via slowly moving packages of chemicals, but through the incredibly fast movement of light? What if the chemical activities we see are simply the surface manifestation of a much more complex system of photos and electromagnetic waves that manifest into the experience of our mind. In this article, we will explore the literature surrounding ultraweak photon emission (UPEs), how they relate to neuronal function, and how this leads to bigger questions regarding the nature of our minds.

To begin discussing a new paradigm, it can be helpful to point out flaws in the current one. For example, consider the electroencephalogram (EEG) test, which records electrical activity in the brain. This test is an incredibly widespread method of understanding brain activity. However, the exact cause of EEG readings remains largely mysterious because the coherence between distant neurons and the speed of neuronal activity are inconsistent with classical electrical models, leading some researchers to believe that quantum mechanical mechanisms must be incorporated into our understanding of the brain (Reinis 2008; Rahnama et al. 2011).  Furthermore, in brain regions such as the neocortex and hippocampus, neuronal activity appears remarkably sparse despite the complex cognitive functions they support, raising critical questions regarding the mechanisms of neuronal coordination that underlie this efficiency (Barth and Poulet 2012; Ahmed and Mehta 2009). The existence of biophotons and UPEs may help fill the gap.

§Reactive Oxidative Species and Ultra-weak Photon Emissions (UPE)

To begin, it is important for us to explore the research involving biophotons and UPEs. Much of this research begins with the famous onion experiment of Alexander Gurwitsch, detailed in his 1923 paper Die Natur des spezifischen Erregers der Zellteilung, which involved positioning onion root tips in close proximity to induce cell division while physically separating them with various barriers. To test the nature of this effect, he physically separated the roots with different materials and observed striking differences: when a solid barrier (like glass or metal) was placed between them, the effect disappeared, but when a quartz barrier was used, the stimulation of cell division still occurred. Gurwitsch hypothesized that the trigger for cell division was a kind of “mitogenic radiation” and was a non-material, oscillatory process capable of propagating through space and interacting with the cell surface via resonance. This challenged the prevailing hormonal theories of the time and introduced the radical idea of biological radiation as a fundamental mechanism in embryonic development and tissue growth.

Over the course of the next century, the initial hypothesis of mitogenic radiation evolved. The next few decades following Gurwitsch’s work is largely dismissive of this non-chemical communication process. However, there is a resurgence in the middle of the century as researchers begin independently observing the existence of ultra-weak photon emission (UPEs) from cells. Today, there is a large corpus of evidence that validates the existence of these biophotons, or UPEs, especially as a consequence of reactive oxidative species (ROS) oxidizing biomolecules and the subsequent relaxation of the resulting excited states to a stable ground state (Pospíšil, Prasad, and Rác 2014; Volodyaev and Beloussov 2015).

To understand how this works, let us review what a ROS is. Reactive oxygen species (ROS) are highly reactive chemical molecules derived from oxygen. They originate primarily as natural byproducts of normal mitochondrial metabolism during oxygen consumption, though their production can also be triggered by pigments. Oxygen is stable with 6 valence electrons, and can bond with another oxygen atom, each sharing 2 electrons with the other to form a stable molecule where each atom can enjoy 8 valence electrons. Below is a Lewis dot structure of oxygen:

 While most of the oxygen we breath is converted to water by cytochrome c oxidase, 10% of our oxygen is given an extra electron to form the superoxide anion (Lushchak 2014; Juan et al. 2021):

 If another electron is added, alongside the availability of protons, hydrogen peroxide (H2O2) can form (Lushchak 2014). While hydrogen peroxide has no lone electrons, it is thermodynamically unstable and can easily react with other molecules to either form water (H2O) or oxygen (O2).

 Furthermore, hydrogen peroxide can accept one more electron and be split into the hydroxyl radical (left) and the hydroxyl anion (right):

 Superoxide (O2-), hydrogen peroxide (H2O2), and the hydroxyl radical (OH.) are all considered reactive oxidative species. These ROS have long been considered harmful to the body because they will interact with other molecules of the body such as lipids, proteins, and DNA which changes their molecular structure and causes dysfunction in the body. This is why our body has antioxidants, as they are meant to neutralize these reactive species before they cause too much harm to our body and health. However, it would be foolish to consider the ROS as purely harmful, a balance always exists in nature. When these ROS oxidize biomolecules, they initiate a cascade of reactions that form high-energy intermediates. Upon decomposition, these intermediates generate electronically excited species, which emit ultra-weak photons as they relax to their ground state (Pospíšil, Prasad, and Rác 2014). The light generated from this has a broad range of possible spectral emissions all the way from the UV range to the IR range (200-800nm) (R. Van Wijk et al. 2020). Furthermore, research  that suggests most, if not all, living systems emit these UPEs and a majority of them come from the mitochondria of our cells (R. Van Wijk et al. 2020). Before one dismisses this emission of light as a simple biproduct of physiologic processes, consider the early work of Gurwitsch: there seems to be some kind of non-material communication between cells. In 2023, Mould et al. tested for non-material communication between isolated mitochondria by stressing one population with antimycin and measured the oxygen consumption of an adjacent mitochondria that was physically separated, either shielded or unshielded by an opaque barrier. Their findings indicated that stressed mitochondria significantly altered the respiration of unshielded neighbors compared to shielded controls, suggesting a light-based signaling mechanism mediated by ultraweak photon emission (Mould et al. 2023). Therefore, just as Gurwitsch found a century ago, there seems to be communication between cells, especially mediated by mitochondria, and it likely stems from the emission of these photons. In short, our cells may be communicating via light. It then becomes exciting to explore the question of how exactly this could occur.  

§UPEs and Microtubules

To understand the mechanism of UPE signaling, especially within the context of neurons, it is important to discuss microtubules. Microtubules are cylindrical macromolecular structures that are commonly known for their role in separating chromosomes during mitosis. While these structures play a role in cellular division, they also act like optical fiber for UPEs.

From a classical biology point of view, it is hard to imagine how the cells of our bodies could properly communicate using light. Consider a lightbulb, and how it emits light from all angles. It is chaotic, and it would be hard to imagine a complex system such as the human body, or any biological life for that matter, could have cells coordinate given such a noisy set of signals. There is, however, the possibility of quantum coherence, which means that light waves move in synchronization, allowing them to transmit precise signals across cells like a focused laser beam instead of scattering as random noise. However, it is difficult for fundamental particles such as photons to be coherent in the warm and wet environments of our human bodies. Despite this, a growing body of evidence suggest that quantum coherence is involved with various biological processes such as photosynthesis, avian navigation, and mitochondrial respiration (Hansley 2025). This where the microtubule comes in, as it is theorized to act as a protective, hollow optical waveguide that confines and aligns photons, shielding them from the chaotic thermal noise of the cell so they can travel as a synchronized signal rather than scattering randomly (Rahnama et al. 2011; Tang and Dai 2014b). For example, a study found that stimulating neuronal metabolism with glutamate significantly increased ultra-weak photon emissions (UPE), and they could decrease in UPE transmission along axons  by disrupting microtubule function (Tang and Dai 2014a). This type of study is strong evidence that UPEs are a product of cellular metabolism and suggest that UPE transmission is influenced by microtubule integrity.

This line of inquiry then leads into other questions, such as what other biological structures are assisting in the quantum coherence of our cell signaling? Does the structured water surrounding our cells also aid in coherence? Recent materials science research indicates that synthetic melanin-like structures have the capability to act as highly efficient shields for electromagnetic waves (Chen et al. 2025). Inspired by these findings, one might hypothesize that biological melanin’s electromagnetic shielding properties could help shelter the body from external waves that would hinder UPE coherence.

§UPEs and Neuronal Activity

The existence of these UPEs, and various explanations of how quantum coherence of signals are maintained, provide profound insights into how neurons function at a quantum biological level. As stated previously, there is a seeming gap in our understanding in how neurons are communicating with one another to the degree that explains what we observe in cognitive ability. To explain this discrepancy, a growing body of research suggests that  on top of the chemical transmission of neuronal signals, biophotons play a significant role in how neurons communicate (Tang and Dai 2014b; Rahnama et al. 2011). Neurons have a high metabolic rate. They are consuming a lot of oxygen and producing much water and ROS species that later cause the release of light. Our brain is the wet and soft organ that is emitting light constantly, and the movement of that light in a coordinated and coherent way may have a great influence on the generation of our experienced body and mind.

In my book The Ancient Way of the Mind, partly through analysis of brain activity studies, I propose the hypothesis that mental activity, or the overproduction thereof, can negatively influence our brain’s ability to interpret reality. While the brain could be said to produce a helpful fiction to help us navigate our world, it still must be able to properly process signals for the sake of our survival. The noisier and more confused the signals, the stronger the illusion becomes and more distant we become from reality. The more one stills the mind, perhaps through meditation, the more the signals become clearer, and we experience more of the truth (Bright 2025). Research has reported significant but weak and temporally variable correlations between UPE fluctuations and EEG alpha activity, suggesting a loose coupling rather than fixed synchronization (R. Van Wijk et al. 2008). Nonetheless, if there is any kind of relationship between EEG and UPE activity, it begs the question of how translatable neuroscientific conclusions of the old paradigm are with the new quantum paradigm in mind.  Put another way, if meditation studies can show changes in EEG activity, to what degree was this coupled with UPE activity?

This naturally raises the question: to what degree do meditative practices alter UPE activity? Several studies by Eduard P.A. Van Wijk have asked the same question, although they were not directly targeted towards UPE activity in the brain. In a small 2005 study of experienced meditators, short-term meditation was associated with slight or inconsistent decreases in UPE intensity, but the structure of the signal became less chaotic and there was a gradual change in the pattern; the authors interpreted this as evidence that meditation may influence UPE dynamics, while noting that the physiological meaning of those changes remains unclear (E. P. A. Van Wijk, Ackerman, and Van Wijk 2005). In 2006, Van Wijk conducted a study where he observed that long-term meditators had a 35% reduced UPE activity in recorded body sites (E. P. A. Van Wijk et al. 2006). In 2008, he similarly showed that longer-term meditators have an overall decreased emission level than those who do not practice, while additionally showing that it is only the intensity of emission that lowers and not the location (E. P. A. Van Wijk, Lüdtke, and Van Wijk 2008). In some ways, these findings are not surprising because they are broadly consistent with literature suggesting that some mind-body practices, including yoga and relaxation-response training, are associated with changes in oxidative-stress-related markers or pathways (Gautam et al. 2021; Dusek et al. 2008).  Therefore, it stands to reason that a meditation practice influences oxidative stress and the subsequent UPE signaling that results. It is then interesting to consider the degree to which this change in UPE signaling creates a calmness and efficiency to the signals that are conducive to mental peace and a cleaner interpretation of our world.

§Concluding Remarks

A growing body of scientific research strongly suggests that our cells, and especially neurons, communicate with each other through the emission of biophotons produced by the ROS of the mitochondria. With these ideas in mind, if the brain is communicating in a complex manner using photons, it would benefit from conditions that maintain quantum coherence in these signals. While there are likely complex physiological processes that support the health of this signaling, our external environment may also play a role.

Assume for a moment, for the sake of argument, that mindfulness practices such as meditation can benefit the health and transmission of these signals. Furthermore, consider the possibility that an indoor lifestyle devoid of the sun, while being surrounded by nnEMF is also impacting the health of this signaling. Given the potential consequences of a lack of meditation and overindulgence of indoor living could have on our mental processing of reality and experienced meaning in life, it then begs the question: to what degree is our modern environment the cave in Plato’s allegory?    

§References

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