# Dissipative Vibrational Model for Chiral Recognition in Olfaction

## TL;DR

This paper presents a theoretical model for olfactory chiral discrimination based on electron tunneling rates affected by molecular chirality and environmental interactions.

## Contribution

It introduces a dissipative vibrational model using a Spin-Boson framework to explain enantiomer-specific electron transport in olfaction.

## Key findings

- Inelastic tunneling rates differ for left- and right-handed enantiomers.
- Discrimination depends on the ratio of tunneling to localization frequencies.
- The model links molecular chirality to measurable electron transport differences.

## Abstract

We examine the olfactory discrimination of left- and right-handed enantiomers of chiral odorants based on the odorant-mediated electron transport from a donor to an acceptor of the olfactory receptors embodied in a biological environment. The chiral odorant is effectively described by an asymmetric double-well potential whose minima are associated to the left- and right-handed enantiomers. The introduced asymmetry is considered as an overall measure of chiral interactions. The biological environment is conveniently modeled as a bath of harmonic oscillators. The resulting Spin-Boson model is adapted by a polaron transformation to derive the corresponding Born-Markov master equation with which we obtain the elastic and inelastic electron tunneling rates. We show that the inelastic tunneling through left- and right-handed enantiomers occurs with different rates. The discrimination mechanism depends on the ratio of tunneling frequency to localization frequency.