Effects of music playing on biological molecules

Abstract

In this work the effect of two different musical pieces (called "Reminiscenza" and "Pioggia") on the tyrosinase enzyme activity was investigated. The l-DOPA production by the enzymatic reaction was measured during the continuous playing of these musical pieces. Experiments were performed in the laboratories of the Institute of Membrane Technology (ITM) of the Italian National Council for Research (CNR). The results showed that a positive effect was exercised by the "Reminiscenza" piece, which determined an increase of the specific activity about of 30 % with respect to the value measured in the absence of sound. On the contrary, "Pioggia" piece had a detrimental effect on the enzymatic process. In particular, a time lag on the l-DOPA production, during the first minutes of the reaction, was detected. After this period, an increase of the reaction velocity occurred even if the enzyme activity was lower than the value obtained in the absence of music. These results show that the peculiar characteristics of a musical piece can exercise a positive or negative action on biological elements and open the way to further studies in this area.