Until recently, scientists believed that human cells communicated strictly via physical contact, but a recent discovery confirms that cell communication is more complicated than previously thought.
A study conducted by Dr. Keith Norris, senior author of the research and assistant dean for clinical and translational science at the David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA, shows that cells may be able to communicate with each other through physical barriers. A February 1 report on Phys Org states that the study is published in the January issue of American Journal of Translational Research, a peer-reviewed journal.
Because nerve cells surrounded by normal cells reacted to the calcium signaling process in the same way as the surrounding cells, even though there was a physical barrier, Norris and his colleagues concluded that communication occurs on a higher level.
Further research showed that nerve cells surrounded by cancer cells or dying cells reacted differently suggesting they were receiving communication from the neighboring cells located outside the physical barrier.
New Age guru, Deepak Chopra, has long claimed that the mind and the body are connected in ways that science has yet to discover, citing the many instances of when a person’s thoughts affect the outcome of illness. According to Chopra, we humans have much more influence over the processes that transpire within our bodies than is commonly believed.
“It is important to realize that our physical bodies are not fixed anatomical structures but dynamic processes that are constantly changing. These processes are influenced by everyday activities such as eating, breathing, digesting, metabolism, elimination, sensory experience and our inner world of thoughts, feelings, emotions, memories, desires, dreams and choices,” shares Deepak Chopra in his column in the Huffington Post.
As of now, science has fallen short of uncovering the exact mechanism responsible for communication between the mind and the body. Norris’ research however appears to bring us one step closer to understanding how cells communicate and may someday be instrumental in solving the mind-body connection.
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