Bio-inspired cryptography based on proteinoid assemblies

Panagiotis Mougkogiannis, Essam Ghadafi and Andrew Adamatzky

PLOS ONE, 2025, vol. 20, issue 5, 1-33

Abstract: We present an innovative cryptographic technique inspired by the self-assembly processes of proteinoids—thermally stable proteins that form spontaneously under prebiotic conditions. By emulating the deterministic yet complex interactions within proteinoid assemblies, the proposed method generates secure encryption keys and algorithms. We measure the unique electrical properties of proteinoid microspheres. Their capacitance values range from –656.6 to 434.9 nF. Then, we convert these measurements into encryption keys using the formula ki=(⌊|Ci|·100⌋mod256). The approach harnesses the inherent unpredictability of proteinoid behavior to create a robust and adaptable encryption framework resilient to cryptanalytic attacks. The encryption process uses modular multiplication: ej=(mj · ki)mod256. This changes plaintext into ciphertext. The security relies on electrical signatures that depend on the composition. Experimental results show that this bio-inspired system aligns with contemporary encryption standards, offering significant benefits in key generation and distribution. Our implementation has a linear computational complexity of O(n). It offers security levels ranging from 8 to 128 bits, based on composition. Additionally, it is energy efficient, performing about 200 operations per joule. Statistical analysis further affirms the high randomness of the generated keys, highlighting the potential of biological processes in advancing cryptographic security.

Date: 2025
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Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:plo:pone00:0324761

DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0324761

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