Quantum simulations suggest lithium isotopes could affect biological reactions differently

While lithium has been used as a first-line treatment for the long-term management of bipolar disorder for more than 70 years, scientists still do not fully understand how it produces its therapeutic effects in the brain.In a new study published in PLOS ONE, Surrey researchers used computational chemistry and quantum simulations to investigate whether part of the answer could lie in "nuclear spin", a quantum property that makes an atom's nucleus behave like a tiny magnet, allowing it to influence nearby electrons and potentially change the outcome of chemical reactions.