Professor Kay Carter-Fenk received a Pittsburgh Quantum Institute Community Collaboration Award in the amount of $45k.
"I led this proposal in collaboration with Prof. Nathan Clark in the Department of Biological Sciences. We are going to combine phylogenetic analysis of migratory and non-migratory Lepidoptera (butterflies and moths) with quantum chemistry simulations to search for evolutionarily conserved amino acids that contribute to the magnetic sensitivity of cryptochrome 1. Our simulations and comparative genomics studies aim to understand the mechanism behind the magnetic compass used by some migratory Lepidoptera (like monarch butterflies) during their migration."
- Professor Kay Carter-Fenk
