Mutating Boundaries

[Guest guest]

Mike,

 

Very interesting questions.

 

> Qi vacuity. How would this concept translate in

> western scientific terms as it relates to signal

> transduction pathways in the cell?

 

One of the reasons why I've argued for the

understanding of the Chinese term xu1 as

vacuity instead of the commonly used " deficiency "

is that I think we need to think of the

implied dynamics in terms of the alternation

of yin1 and yang2, which is the heart that

beats within all Chinese medical theory. Vacuity

conveys the sense of emptiness and certainly

emptiness and fullness are more appropriate

concepts with which to approach questions

related to propagation of signals than

deficient and excess, whether or not the

signals in question are moving along pathways

in cells or pathways in the body seen as

an aggregate of cells.

 

I'm not knowledgable about signal transduction

pathways in the cell and will look into

it. But I presume that signal transduction

pathways are marked by areas of greater

and lesser pressure, which appear to me

as fractals in the same pattern of

attractors we find expressed in

the channels and network vessels, which

show the pathways of yin1 and yang2,

xu1 and shi2 throughout the body.

 

In other words, what we know as acupuncture

points are common denominator loci of

junctions where the qi4 connects in its

cyclical encircling of the whole organism.

Jing1 luo4 theory suggests that this

pattern repeats as the qi4 distributes

into every nook and cranny of the entire body.

So of course it expresses at the level of signal

transduction pathways in the cell. Signals

tend move through systems from areas of

relatively greater pressure to areas of relatively

lower pressure.

 

The idea of fractal here is that at

whatever scale we look we see a

recognizable pattern. This is a pattern

of emptiness and fullness, vacuity

and repletion, xu1 and shi2. In

tai4 ji2 texts they are often translated

into English as insubstantial and

substantial.

 

Tai4 ji2 comes from wu2 ji2 and is the

mother of yin1 and yang2, according to

classical thought. What's important to

me about such phrases is not so much

their abstract esoteric or arcane significances

but their formal relationships and the

way that their use orders data. The

mode of thinking lends a set of

characteristics to the patterns of

data that become arrayed during the

course of thought.

 

I think that to investigate the parallels

between traditional Chinese perspectives

on anatomy and physiology at the level you've

mentioned requires a thorough and comprehensive

survey of what the Chinese terms involved

all really mean. This is a non-trivial

task but one in which I am more than happy

to engage. In fact it's a little amazing

to me that you posted this this morning

as I was just making some notes along

similar lines concerning the correlation

of Chinese and Western medical terminologies

pegged to the implied dynamics, which are

presumed to be common. It has been noted

that that presumption may or may not be

completely justifiable. But I believe

that there is a good deal to be gained

from going through the exercise, including

some experience that might help decide

the matter.

 

Is there a Chinese

> character for NF-kappaB? Phosphorylation of NF-kappaB?

> NF-kappaB and phosphorylation are direct elements of

> TNF-alpha-induced inflammation signals inside the

cell.

 

Not my subject area, and I have no idea. But there are

probably Chinese terms for these processes and substances.

Have you checked the online resources?

 

Phosphorylation can protect a gene from

degredation, whether or not it is a beneficial gene.

 

But as I understand it (which is not extensively),

the mechanism(s) of phosphorylation are not yet

clearly understood. Perhaps yin1 yang2 theory

could be useful in research to understand them more

clearly.

 

> Voltage-gated calcium channels and acupuncture should

> prove to be a fascinating area for research, with new

ideas, concepts, and morphologies in language.

 

Agreed.

 

 

> When these types of pathways have been better defined,

> it seems that there will be opportunity to integrate

and translate TCM concepts both ways.

 

Again, agreed.

 

Carl Jung has

> shown that the Chinese character for both danger and

opportunity are the same.

 

Well, I¡¯ve certainly not read everything of Jung's

but I dont think he could have shown this since

it isnt true. What is true is that the Chinese word

for ¡°crisis¡± is composed of the two characters

¡°wei1¡± and ¡°ji1¡± which mean ¡°danger¡± and ¡°opportunity¡±

respectively.

 

Despite the fact that

translators can be such barbarians,

 

Ain¡¯t that the truth!

 

the genetic

frontier looms.

 

And I think we should position ourselves at this frontier.

 

Ken