Abstract
This research investigates the influence of external electromagnetic fields on proton tunneling and tautomeric shifts in DNA nitrogenous base pairs, focus- ing on the potential amplification of these quantum effects and their impact on genetic fidelity and mutation rates. Proton tunneling, a quantum mechanical phenomenon, allows for spontaneous shifts between canonical and tautomeric forms of base pairs, which can result in replication errors and mutations. Us- ing a combination of theoretical modeling and experimental design, along with Python-based data analysis, we demonstrate how an applied EMF modifies the potential energy landscape of DNA hydrogen bonds, increasing the probability of proton tunneling and enhancing the frequency of tautomeric shifts. Data related to the effects of EMF on these processes were fetched and processed us- ing Python, allowing for precise quantification of tunneling probabilities under varying conditions. The mathematical formulation employs the WKB approxi- mation to calculate tunneling probabilities both with and without EMF, showing that the presence of the field lowers the energy barrier for tunneling. Kinetic analysis reveals that this leads to a higher rate of tautomerization, which can be correlated with increased replication errors.