Nebula connects protein discovery with predictions and independent experiments.
We are building a discovery platform for protein sensing. The scientific question is whether a molecular mechanism can provide useful information under the conditions of a particular experiment. Optical measurements and electrical measurements offer different ways to read a protein response.
Discovery screening has identified molecular hypotheses for further investigation.
Nebula has run screening that combines structural evidence with inexpensive physical checks. The screening examines a cofactor’s molecular surroundings and possible routes for electron transfer. These checks help identify mechanisms worth testing.
Discovery screening has run.
The completed screening provides hypotheses and priorities for detailed investigation.
Detailed physics is being developed.
We are building integrated models that connect each protein’s molecular conditions to an experimental prediction.
Independent experimental comparison comes next.
Measurements will test predictions recorded before the experimental results are revealed.
The screening does not establish a measured Nebula sensing response. Prediction accuracy, reproducibility and useful sensing performance each require their own experimental assessment.
Natural protein families provide different molecular environments to investigate.
A cofactor is a molecule that helps a protein perform a chemical function. Flavin adenine dinucleotide and flavin mononucleotide are cofactors involved in electron transfer. Proteins hold these cofactors in different surroundings, which can affect radical formation and the reactions that follow.
Nebula searches broad classes of flavin binding enzymes and electron transfer proteins. The proposed contribution is a systematic connection between a measurement requirement, a molecular hypothesis, a physical prediction and an independent test. Natural origin alone does not establish novelty or better performance. Each candidate must be compared with an appropriate existing method.
Published protein experiments establish the starting point for magnetic sensing.
Light can initiate electron transfer and create radicals, which contain unpaired electrons. The spins of two radicals can interact with one another and with nearby atomic nuclei. In a suitable radical pair, these interactions influence chemical reactions and can allow a magnetic field to change the fluorescence measured from the protein.
Abrahams and colleagues engineered MagLOV proteins and detected magnetic resonance through fluorescence in living bacterial cells at room temperature. Meng and colleagues demonstrated optical measurement and radio wave control of spin chemistry in flavoproteins, including spatial magnetic field measurement. These observations apply to the published proteins and experimental conditions. Abrahams et al., 2026 · Meng et al., 2026
Which structures appear in the animation?
The central protein ribbons and bound flavin adenine dinucleotide come from chain A of Arabidopsis thaliana cryptochrome 2, deposited as structure 6K8I. The representation retains unresolved backbone gaps. Ma et al., 2020
The surrounding folds and the next protein in the learning sequence are schematic architectures. They illustrate structural variety, rather than disclosed Nebula candidates. The cofactor is enlarged independently beside a schematic electron donor to make the paired reaction sites visible. The donor’s shape, the spacing between sites and the connecting paths are explanatory drawings, rather than deposited atom coordinates or a simulation of electron motion.
Illumination, branching paths, instruments and application scenes illustrate proposed mechanisms and experiments. Brightness and path emphasis encode no measured amplitudes, probabilities or candidate ranking. The animation does not display calibrated fields or a validated Nebula sensing response.
A useful physical model must describe the protein and conditions that will be measured.
The detailed model must evaluate which radicals could form, how long they could survive and which spin interactions could affect a measurement. Protein structure alone cannot answer these questions. The calculation must also describe the cofactor state, surrounding molecules and competing reactions.
The intended output is a prediction such as an electron paramagnetic resonance spectrum or a response over time, with stated assumptions and uncertainty. Electron paramagnetic resonance measures properties of unpaired electron spins. Comparing a predicted spectrum with an independent measurement can therefore test aspects of the proposed radical mechanism.
The integrated calculations and their experimental comparison remain development work. Support for a radical mechanism would justify further investigation, but useful optical or electrical performance must be measured separately.
Independent measurements will test predictions recorded before the results are revealed.
Protein production and sample quality checks can proceed alongside model development. Before the comparison, we will record the prediction, the measured quantity, the acceptance criteria and the treatment of uncertainty. The model and experiment must describe the same molecular conditions.
Independent electron paramagnetic resonance measurements will test the proposed radical states and their behaviour. Controls must distinguish a protein response from background chemistry. Repeated measurements within one preparation assess measurement consistency; separate preparations test whether the result is reproducible.
Each comparison should inform the next protein or experiment.
The intended learning cycle connects an identified sample and recorded prediction to an independent result. We will examine agreement and disagreement, revise the relevant model assumptions and select an experiment that can resolve the remaining uncertainty.
Disagreement can justify revising the model, repeating a measurement with better controls or testing a different protein. The animation makes the intended change in search direction visible. It does not imply that each result produces a superior sensor, or that this experimental feedback has already been completed.
Optical readout measures light from the protein response.
Illumination excites the protein system, and an optical path collects emitted light. In suitable published reporters, magnetic fields and radio waves can alter that light signal. Abrahams et al., 2026 · Meng et al., 2026
The measurement objective determines the comparison. Measuring a magnetic field requires a calibrated relationship between field and signal. Measuring a biochemical variable requires evidence that the signal distinguishes that variable from other influences. Using magnetic modulation to separate a reporter from optical background requires evidence that the separation improves a useful measurement.
A first microscopy study would test separation from fluorescent background.
A fluorescent reporter can be difficult to distinguish from other light in a sample. Abrahams and colleagues used magnetic modulation in engineered proteins to separate their fluorescence from background. A proposed Nebula study would test whether a natural candidate can provide a useful response under the conditions required by a partner’s instrument. Abrahams et al., 2026
The study would define the signal to recover.
Begin with a purified protein in solution and a controlled fluorescent background. Agree the change to resolve, observation interval and acceptable uncertainty.
The comparison would use matched conditions and independent references.
Compare the candidate with an established reporter under the same illumination, buffer and observation time. Switch the applied field and include a nonresponsive reference to identify effects of switching. An independent field reference and separate protein preparations are required.
The result must improve the measurement.
Measure signal, background, noise, drift and bleaching. A repeatable response would justify integration only if it improves separation under the agreed conditions and observation burden. An unhelpful response would prompt revision or closure of that application.
Large fluorescence contrast is not a measured detection limit. Noise, response time, sample geometry and illumination determine whether an advantage survives in a useful measurement. A magnetic response alone does not establish a measurement of disease or tissue health.
Electrical transduction measures a response at a protein electrode interface.
With Qnity, the electrical workstream will test whether an attached protein produces a reproducible response during repeated light and dark cycles. The electrical measurement could be capacitance, impedance or an appropriate current signal. Capacitance describes charge storage. Impedance describes how an interface responds to an electrical perturbation. The measurement must be chosen for the protein and experimental question. Qnity’s platform
The initial tests must separate protein photoresponse from electrode background, illumination effects, temperature changes and drift. Separate preparations and electrodes will test reproducibility. An electrical reader may remove the need to collect fluorescence, while photoactivation can still require light.
Electrical output does not define the variable being sensed.
A reproducible light response would establish photoresponse at the interface. Magnetic sensing would require a separate calibrated response to an applied magnetic field and controls for associated artifacts. Electrical output does not establish sensitivity to an external electric field. A biochemical measurement would likewise require evidence of which chemical variable the signal represents.
What does the published electrode experiment establish?
Zeng and colleagues reported currents that changed with an applied magnetic field in immobilized human CRY1 under 447 nm illumination. The experiment used cyclic voltammetry at room temperature in nitrogen. This provides an electrical measurement precedent for investigating protein interfaces. Zeng et al., 2018
The reported rate change was obtained from a fitted relationship, rather than a measured magnetic field detection limit. The paper’s purification description and named commercial lysate require clarification before treating the preparation as a purified protein benchmark. Its current measurement does not validate Qnity’s capacitance assay or directly resolve the proposed radical mechanism.
A useful device would also need stable protein attachment, calibration and access to the intended sample. Those requirements apply to the whole measurement system, not just to the protein response.
Each application requires evidence that the new signal improves a biological decision.
The five settings below are research hypotheses. Published studies establish relevant biological questions and existing measurement methods. Each proposed Nebula application must show what its signal measures, how reliably it can be read and whether it adds useful information.
Repeated measurements could reveal how cells change during disease development.
A protein reporter measures a molecular response. To investigate early disease, researchers must establish whether that response distinguishes disease development from benign stress. Following the same cells over time could reveal changes that a single reading misses.
Published studies support repeated biological observation, with specific limits.
Sawayama and colleagues transplanted engineered human skin onto mice and observed fluorescence after repeated inflammatory challenges. In separate cell culture experiments, the engineered cells responded to both tumour necrosis factor alpha and interleukin 1 beta. The work supports a persistent biological reporting interface, but it does not establish cancer detection. Sawayama et al., 2026
Walsh and colleagues used optical metabolic imaging to measure drug responses in tumour organoids, which are three dimensional models grown from tumour material. Responses in organoids derived from xenografts were compared with tumour growth and tissue measurements in mice. This is a relevant existing method for following treatment response, rather than evidence of early diagnosis. Walsh et al., 2014
A July 2026 preprint used the engineered reporter mtMagLOV2 in mitochondria, the cell structures involved in energy metabolism. The authors measured fluorescence responses during applied magnetic fields and pharmacological perturbations. The reported signal is driven by the applied field; it is not a measurement of the cell’s own magnetic field. Specificity to one biochemical variable remains a question for further testing. Aghaei et al., 2026, preprint
Nebula hypothesis. A localized protein reporter with a calibrated response might improve identification of a defined cellular transition at a tolerable observation burden.
A first experiment would test whether the signal adds information on independent samples.
Compare matched normal and transformation relevant cell models with benign stress controls. Measure the candidate alongside an appropriate conventional reporter and independent biological endpoints. Define the observation duration, sampling interval and acceptable drift before testing, and check whether the measurement itself changes cell behaviour.
A useful result would improve discrimination of the defined transition on samples excluded from model development, at matched observation time and illumination. Failure to distinguish benign stress or to improve on the existing reporter would reject the proposed advantage.
Continuous monitoring for early cancer in humans remains a longer term hypothesis. It would require evidence for delivery, localization, reader access, sustained calibration, biological specificity and clinical usefulness.
Local measurements could guide the culture of engineered tissues.
A tissue engineer needs to decide when to change culture conditions or perfusion, the flow that supplies the construct. A measurement taken outside the tissue can average together different local conditions. The proposed opportunity is to identify a useful change where it occurs.
Existing tissue studies establish both the biological problem and strong comparators.
Grebenyuk and colleagues built synthetic vessels that perfused engineered tissues. Compared with constructs without perfusion, perfused tissues showed less staining for a marker of cell death and supported continued growth. These results establish the importance of transport in that tissue system; they do not measure sensor performance. Grebenyuk et al., 2023
Ghosheh and colleagues combined oxygen uptake, extracellular electrical signals and contraction measurements in human cardiac organoids. A new molecular signal must therefore answer a question that these established channels do not adequately resolve. Ghosheh et al., 2023
Nebula hypothesis. A reporter placed at a defined location might identify a local biochemical change early enough to guide culture or perfusion before tissue function deteriorates.
A first experiment would connect a local response to an independent measure of tissue function.
Use an accessible perfused tissue model and impose controlled changes in flow or nutrients. Compare the candidate with oxygen measurements, a conventional reporter and later tissue function. Match observation time and illumination, and check whether expression or measurement alters the tissue.
A useful result would identify an actionable change earlier or more reliably than the existing measurements on independent constructs. If the established channels support the same decision with less burden, the additional signal would not justify integration.
An electrode bound protein could instead sample a defined tissue surface or perfusate interface. That arrangement would measure its accessible sample, not the state of every cell inside the construct.
Contained marine cell experiments could reveal responses to environmental change.
Marine physiology groups need to distinguish damaging stress from acclimation to changing conditions. A useful reporter must connect its signal to an independently measured biological response. A signal change alone does not establish damage or recovery.
Conventional reporters already reveal local biochemical responses in diatoms.
Rosenwasser and colleagues targeted a redox sensitive fluorescent protein to different parts of diatom cells. Redox describes the balance of oxidation and reduction reactions. The reporter revealed distinct local oxidation patterns when nitrogen conditions changed. The authors also used protein measurements and metabolic analysis to investigate the response. Rosenwasser et al., 2014
This study establishes an existing route to local biochemical information in a marine cell model. It does not show that magnetic modulation improves that measurement or that a reporter can operate reliably in an open ocean environment.
Nebula hypothesis. A calibrated protein response might help distinguish stress from acclimation under controlled environmental conditions, either by improving the biological information or by making the response easier to separate from background.
A first experiment would compare one environmental change with an established reporter.
Begin with a contained marine cell culture and change one condition, such as nitrogen availability. Measure the candidate, the relevant conventional reporter and independent growth or physiological endpoints. Control salinity, temperature and illumination, including the possibility that excitation changes the cells being observed.
A useful result would distinguish the specified biological response more reliably, or obtain equivalent information with less observation burden, on independent cultures. The comparison must include background fluorescence and drift.
A contained electrical cartridge is a separate possibility once the measured chemical variable is established. The cartridge would sample material at its electrode interface. Any later marine deployment would also need evidence for storage, fouling resistance and calibration under the intended conditions.
Information from living actuator cells could improve control of a biohybrid robot.
A biohybrid robot combines living components with an engineered device. A controller needs to know when to change stimulation, rest or nutrient supply. Force or movement describes the actuator’s output, while a useful molecular signal could potentially explain or anticipate a decline in that output.
Published robots demonstrate living actuation, rather than the proposed sensing advantage.
Min and colleagues combined optogenetic mouse motor neurons, skeletal muscle and wireless light delivery in miniature crawling robots. Optogenetic neurons respond to light and can activate connected muscle. The study related optical stimulation to mechanical output and demonstrated sustained mechanical function in the tested systems. Min et al., 2025
These results establish a relevant actuation setting. They do not show that a protein quantum sensor predicts fatigue or improves a controller.
Nebula hypothesis. A calibrated molecular signal in selected actuator cells might predict a functional limit early enough to guide a useful change in control.
A first experiment would test prediction before allowing the signal to control movement.
Begin with stationary engineered muscle in a controlled chamber. Record force or strain, an appropriate conventional physiological reporter and the candidate signal together. Define the decline in function to predict, the required warning time and the acceptable false alarm rate before examining the outcome.
A useful result would improve prediction on independent tissues. Only then would a later experiment use the signal to adjust stimulation or perfusion. Compare controllers at matched useful work, because reduced fatigue caused only by doing less work would not establish a sensing advantage.
An electrical interface could eventually connect a qualified molecular response to a controller. The interface would need a demonstrated relationship to actuator physiology, stable coupling and adequate response speed. A current signal alone does not identify fatigue.
A contained culture could provide a practical starting point for biological sensing beyond Earth.
A culture used in space biology or production needs information about viability and function, within limits on equipment, sample handling and power. The first measurement should inform a specific decision about maintaining the culture.
Spaceflight studies motivate biological monitoring without establishing a particular sensor.
Da Silveira and colleagues analysed biological measurements from astronauts and samples flown in space. Their combined analysis associated spaceflight with mitochondrial changes. The result motivates further study of cellular function, but it does not isolate radiation as the cause of every observed change. da Silveira et al., 2020
NASA’s BioNutrients programme grew engineered yeasts that produced nutrients in experiments aboard the International Space Station. This establishes a concrete culture setting in which storage, restart and productive function matter. It does not establish a Nebula device, a NASA collaboration or a sensing advantage. NASA, updated 2025
Nebula hypothesis. A qualified molecular reporter might provide warning of stress or declining production early enough to improve management of a contained culture.
A first experiment would test the measurement in matched cultures on the ground.
Use small bioreactors with controlled changes in nutrients, oxygen or oxidative conditions. Compare the candidate with a conventional reporter, independent viability measurements and product yield. Include storage and restart conditions, and test prediction on culture runs excluded from model development.
A useful result would improve a defined culture decision while meeting the allowed measurement burden. Compare the complete optical or electrical apparatus, including calibration, illumination if required, sample handling, electrode lifetime and power.
Ground experiments would not establish flight readiness. A later space application would need its own qualification. A downstream biological stress response is also distinct from radiation dose, which requires a separate physical measurement.
Our collaborators contribute distinct capabilities to the programme.
Our collaborations connect protein production, physical theory, experimental measurements and independent analysis. Professors Robert Bittl, Thomas P. Fay and Justin R. Caram, together with Dr Laís Lopes of Qnity, also serve as scientific advisors.
Trenzyme produces and checks protein samples.
Its contribution covers protein production, purification and sample quality checks.
Robert Bittl advises on radical state measurements.
His contribution at Freie Universität Berlin concerns electron paramagnetic resonance experiments and the interpretation of radical states.
Thomas P. Fay advises on physical models.
His contribution at UCLA concerns electron transfer and radical pair spin dynamics.
Justin R. Caram advises on optical measurements.
His contribution at UCLA concerns how protein responses and magnetic field effects can be measured through light.
Dr Laís Lopes advises on electrical interfaces.
Her contribution at Qnity concerns molecular electrode interfaces and electrochemical measurements.
Leap Dynamics plans and analyses independent comparisons.
Its contribution covers statistical planning and comparison of predictions with measurements.
Paid studies would connect validated responses to a customer’s measurement.
The commercial offering we are developing would adapt discovery and testing to a customer’s sample, instrument and acceptance criteria. Once experimental evidence supports that scope, a paid study would deliver preparation methods, predicted and measured performance, and reproducible analysis.
Results that meet the agreed criteria could support an integration pilot. The pilot would test whether the response transfers to the customer’s equipment, routine samples and operating conditions, and whether it adds useful information to the existing measurement.
Repeated success in independently tested predictions and reliable transfer could support repeat studies or licensing of the discovery workflow or a validated sensing application.
The publications and source records can be inspected directly.
Results cited above refer to the published systems and experimental conditions. The proposed applications and comparisons are development questions. The mitochondrial study is identified as a preprint.
Meng et al. (2026)
Optically detected and radio wave-controlled spin chemistry in flavoproteins. Nature Biotechnology.
Magnetoreception of Photoactivated Cryptochrome 1 in Electrochemistry and Electron Transfer. ACS Omega. Electrode-current measurements under illumination and applied magnetic fields.
Quantitative optical imaging of primary tumor organoid metabolism predicts drug response in breast cancer. Cancer Research. Tumour-derived organoid imaging and xenograft comparison.
Large-scale perfused tissues via synthetic 3D soft microfluidics. Nature Communications 14, 193. Perfused tissue constructs and comparisons of viability.
Mapping the diatom redox-sensitive proteome provides insight into response to nitrogen stress in the marine environment. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. Redox proteomics and localized conventional fluorescent reporters.
Comprehensive Multi-Omics Analysis Reveals Mitochondrial Stress as a Central Biological Hub for Spaceflight Impact. Cell. Associations across spaceflight datasets.
The Next Leap in Molecular Screening. Official description of Qnity’s molecular electrode platform. This is a platform description, not a Nebula experimental result.
A quantum interface with mitochondrial bioenergetics. July 2026 preprint. Fluorescence measurements in mitochondria during applied magnetic fields and pharmacological perturbations.
