  Recent discovery by Perutz et al. of the physical structure of the amyloid
that accumulates in neurons in certain neurodegenerative diseases like
Alzheimer's disease or Huntington's disease, suggests novel mechanism of
consciousness impairment, different from the neuronal loss, which is the end
stage of the pathogenic process. Amyloid is shown to be water-filled nanotubes
made of polymerized pathologically-changed proteins. It is hypothesized that
the water inside the new-formed nanotubes can manifest optical coherent
laser-like excitations and superradiance similarly to the processes taking part
in the normal brain microtubules as shown by Jibu et al. The interfering with
the macroscopic quantum effects within the normal microtubules can lead to
impairment of conscious experience. Experimental data in favor of quantum
theory of consciousness can be obtained from the research of the amyloid
nanotubes.
