Molecular Memory of Life
Post-mortem biomarkers that outlive us, fueling wearables and fact-checking history
What if your wearable could warn you of an approaching heart attack hours before the symptomps ? And what if a single parchment could tell us about the health of people 600 years ago or even unlock how proteins evolved across millennia? At first glance, these questions seem separated by centuries and disciplines. But Dr. Gleb Zilberstein develops technology that connects pistant past with the future through proteins.
Gleb first contacted me after I published my piece on cryo-mummies. His work sounded familiar; he extracted proteomic signatures from mammoth remains preserved in permafrost. However, when he mentioned he “also ~revived~ count Dracula” I raised my eyebrow enough to dare ask what he meant. It turns out that Gleb and his team can detect proteomic signatures from any “super old” object, and the insights could help us verify historians’ claims about the past. However, Gleb quickly realized that the tech he developped can be applied not only to study the past, but also predict the future.
The Past
In biophysics, there’s a concept known as the folding funnel; it’s a “path” proteins follow as they fold into their functional shapes. But what happens to these shapes over decades, centuries, or even tens of thousands of years? Using paleontological and archaeological objects ranging from insects trapped in amber to parchment manuscripts and even seeds that sprouted after 30,000 years in Siberian ice (yes, they s p r o u t e d = were functionally reviewed) they’re mapping how the tertiary structure of proteins evolves with time. To determine that, Gleb’s team uses the patented EVA-chip extraction system: a deceptively simple strip that functions like a molecular sponge. Originally designed for proteomics and metabolomics, EVA technology allows researchers to gently lift proteins, metabolites, and even viral components from delicate surfaces like 300-year-old parchment, frescoes, or biological remains without destroying the sample. It’s precise enough to distinguish high- from low-abundance proteins, yet flexible enough to work across disciplines, from oncology biopsies to pigment analysis in medieval wood paintings or even Leonardo da Vinci’s Donna Nuda, where it uncovered egg-based binders and restoration layers. Most importantly, the researchers can distinguish the “real marks” from modern contamination picked up on the strip, mainly by assessing how old the molecules are via oxidation, racemization or deamidation. By fractionating molecules based on charge and hydrophobicity, EVA strips enable non-destructive, high-resolution sampling, offering a viable path forward for both preserving the past and diagnosing the present. In fact, because the samples remain stable at room temperature, this technology may one day be embedded into wearable health sensors passively collecting molecular snapshots as you go about your day (see later in the article in “the future” paragraph). However, staying within the historical realm, recent applications include Dead Sea Scrolls fragments revealing scribes’ plant-based diets via legume peptides, and the Aleppo Codex’s fungal culprits behind its corrosion, demonstrating EVA’s power to rewrite history one molecule at a time.
My two favorite of Gleb’s team findings include:
● Bulgakov’s Manuscript Findings: Historically exciting discoveries emerged from the examination of the margins on Mikhail Bulgakov’s Master and Margarita manuscript (one of my favorite novels!) , shedding light on his deteriorating health and reliance on pain-relieving drugs during his final creative years.The non-invasive EVA analysis of the 1930s–1940s typescript pages detected elevated periostin, N-acetyl-β-glucosaminidase and nephrin, peptides (a hallmark of advanced kidney disease) corroborating historical accounts of Bulgakov’s nephrosclerosis, which plagued him in his last four years. Even more poignantly, morphine metabolites were identified in sweat residues, indicating the author’s self-administration of the opioid as a palliative for excruciating renal pain, a detail that humanizes the tormented genius behind his satirical masterpiece (and maybe explains a lot of the scenes…)
● Milan’s Lazaretto Death Registries Findings: Likewise, revelations came from deeper probes into the death ledgers preserved in Milan’s lazaretto amid the devastating 1630 plague epidemic, uncovering traces of the era’s microbial horrors and human desperation. Applied to the yellowed, ink-stained parchments recording over 15,000 plague fatalities, the EVA strips revealed Yersinia pestis antigens (the bubonic plague pathogen) and Bacillus anthracis spores (anthrax), confirming infectious agents lingered on the documents themselves likely from contaminated hands or air. Human traces painted a grim tableau: mouse proteins in scribe sweat suggested famine-forced cannibalism on rodents for sustenance, while cereal and legume peptides hinted at meager diets; heavy metals like lead and copper from inks, plus stress-induced cortisol markers, underscored the scribes’ exhaustion and peril as they toiled in the plague-ravaged quarantine zone
But Gleb didn’t stop at deciphering history. In one of his most audacious experiments, he placed a single protein between superconducting electrodes to create a Josephson junction, a quantum device more commonly used to detect exotic electronic behaviors in physics labs. By inserting a biological molecule into this setup, his team demonstrated that proteins can function not just as static samples but as active elements in quantum sensing platforms. Why does this matter? Because the Josephson junction allows researchers to measure submolecular electrical properties like polarizability, magnetic susceptibility, and electron density without destroying the molecule. In simple terms, this gives us a non-invasive way to peer into the 3D architecture and behavior of individual proteins, something that traditional tools like crystallography or mass spectrometry often struggle to do at such sensitivity or in near-physiological conditions.
At first glance, studying a single protein might sound like an academic exercise; after all, what could one molecule possibly reveal? Traditional techniques require millions of identical proteins, harsh preparation steps, or freeze-frame snapshots that miss dynamic behavior. In contrast, this quantum approach allows scientists to observe how a single, intact protein behaves in real time; how it folds, misfolds, or responds to external stimuli like heat, pH shifts, or even a drug molecule. It matters because biology is full of rare, unstable, or mutated protein forms that escape bulk analysis but drive devastating diseases. With a setup like this, we could detect the earliest signs of molecular dysfunction.
The Future
After years of tracing how proteins persist through millennia, Gleb asked a natural question: what if we turned these tools forward onto living people? He founded Spectrophon Ltd. in 2012, building continuous monitors that offer underexplored capabilities such as the Dehydration Body Monitor (DBM) for real-time sweat and electrolyte tracking during exercise, a non-invasive glucose sensor for diabetes care, troponin detection for early cardiac events, luteinizing hormone for ovulation, and even external toxins like PM2.5. Validated in clinical trials, like a 2017 study of 200 participants showing high accuracy in hydration metrics via Samsung-integrated wearables, these devices apply EVA-inspired molecular capture to everyday life, turning smartphones into proactive health guardians.
Recently, Gleb’s team extended their work into orbit; collaborating with NASA-affiliated researchers to explore how minimally invasive wearables could monitor astronauts’ physiological responses to extreme space stressors like cosmic radiation and microgravity. Using EVA-based biosensing platforms and surface-friendly extraction films, they aim to passively collect biomarkers from sweat, skin, or interstitial fluid during spaceflight. These collaborations are now helping to evaluate markers like cortisol, cardiac stress indicators, dehydration status, and even brain injury biomarkers (like those relevant to traumatic brain injury) using non-invasive dermal interfaces.
Take home message
Zilberstein’s EVA threads remind us that we’re all archives in motion. Whether decoding the fevered scrawls of a plague-ridden scribe or alerting you to a stealthy arrhythmia mid-hike, this molecular bridge reanimates the human story, urging us to live not in isolation, but as echoes of the vast, unfolding now. Gleb’s company is open to partnerships, of any nature: wearable, history decoding, smart sensors - you name it!
Our molecular marks will outlast us.