Jobs.
A quick overview of a few texts I have contributed to.
I have been asked to write a few things for a German osteopath who has an already rather long list of published books and papers. Here's a taster. Hope he won't mind.
The definition of health. Health from a living systems perspective. The task: To include a table from a recent paper into a chapter on 'health', and to summarise and discuss the author's work. My paragraph:
Health from a living systems perspective
Health comprises a set of resources necessary to achieve goals, adapt to environmental changes, satisfy needs and sustain life. Health is generally perceived to possess instrumental value, enabling the individual to pursue his or her life goals, which can be variably defined as individual or biological in nature. Philosophically, health is rarely regarded an end in itself but rather a prerequisite to a desirable life.
Health has been regarded as a mere adaptation to environmental challenge. This notion may be limited in that it is purely reactive, thus neglecting the active properties of health which enable growth and thriving.
According to Forrest (2014), previous definitions of health failed to examine the constituent parts of health itself. What are the individual aspects of health and how do they interact to produce the features generally attributed to health? Adopting a living systems perspective, Forrest (2014) includes such 'assets' into an examination of health. This conceptualisation is rested upon fundamental notions of living systems theory; Living systems are energetically open systems which are in dynamic interaction with their environments, constantly working to reduce internal entropy. They comprise of individual parts which, in interaction with each other, assume a complex systems character, delineating the organism from the environment and maintaining structure of the unit. Hierarchical arrangements are characteristic of complex systems (Kaneko, 2006).
Human beings are a prime example of complex systems and with health being a potential attribute of this system, systems theory justifies an investigation into the hierarchically subservient parts, or 'assets', of health. Accordingly, these 'assets' would dynamically interact with each other and the environment to produce emergent properties of health (Forrest, 2014).
Forrest (2014) proposes to organise the assets of health along five dimensions: energetics, restoration, mind,
reproduction, and capabilities (see Table 1).
Properties of each asset depend on a multitude of processes at cell, tissue and organ level. For example, an individual's capacity to recover from tissue injury can be classified as a restoration asset. Amongst others, it would depend on current immune function, blood clotting properties, previous tissue state etc. The restoration asset will then, for example, also depend on the organism's oxygen metabolism; part of the energetics dimension.
[INSERT TABLE]
[TABLE CAPTION: Living systems theory suggests that 'health' as a property of a complex system needs to be examined for both its constituent parts and for the emergent properties resulting from interaction between them and the environment. Individual dimensions of health interact to produce emergent properties of health. Individually, they depend upon cell, tissue and organ properties and on each other.]
The energetics dimension comprises physiological processes concerned with the overall energy metabolism and more specifically electrolyte balance, water, gas and nutrient metabolism. It can be generally seen to make up the person’s physical fitness level.
The restoration dimension of health includes all these processes that allow the organism to withstand and recover from daily environmental insults. Radiation, chemical and mechanical factors are potentially harmful and so are psychological stressors or pathogens. The skin is just one example of tissues designed to defend the body against those insults.
The ability to reproduce is a defining factor for any species. For human beings this health asset also comprises their sexuality and the ability to pursue sexually oriented needs and goals. Mind, according to Forrest (2014),is the process of knowing. Mind assets offer the ability to sense data in the environment through sensory systems. Also, we need to perceive our emotions, understand the meaning of sensory and emotional data to create information that can be interpreted individually Experience accumulated through this process eventually informs our actions when re-exposed to similar information: we learn. and with accumulated experience, knowledge accrues as we learn from repeated exposure to the same type of information.’ (p. 212)
Finally, ‘capability’ is what enables a healthy being to engage with their environment in a motivated and fulfilling manner. As such, what exactly comprises somebody’s capability requirements is highly dependent on individual history, life experience, values and beliefs, but also on overall cultural, political and economic context. Processes supporting communication, mobility and social interaction fall within this dimension (Forrest, 2014).
Complex systems, and human beings in particular, are special in that they not only possess adaptation mechanisms to interact with their environment, they also possess mind, which enables them to experience and learn from experience. Any examination of health and its assets will thus have to include such biography-dependent features. This notion ties in with the resource concept previously discussed in an osteopathic context, where health can only be understood as a dynamic and evolutionary process. The personal experience of health is itself an emergent property of the lived experience of individual dimension qualities, past and present and always in an environmental context.
Based upon the above complex system analysis, Forrest (2014) proposes a new definition of health:
'Health enables individuals to adapt to their physical and social environments, satisfy their needs, attain their goals, and live long lives free from distress and suffering' (p. 212).
Here, health is regarded philosophically as a means to other, individual and biological, ends. A passive adaptation component of health is acknowledged, but is not exclusive of active aspects, which enable individuals to grow, develop and reproduce. Adopting a complex systems perspective allows for a more appropriate examination of the constituent parts comprising health, thus enabling the osteopathic practitioner to appreciate both the role of parts and the non-linear emergence of system properties.
References for this section:
Forrest, C.B. (2014). A living systems perspective on health. Medical Hypotheses. 82: 209–214
Kaneko, K. (2006): Life: An Introduction to Complex Systems Biology (Understanding Complex Systems). New York: Springer.
Health from a living systems perspective
Health comprises a set of resources necessary to achieve goals, adapt to environmental changes, satisfy needs and sustain life. Health is generally perceived to possess instrumental value, enabling the individual to pursue his or her life goals, which can be variably defined as individual or biological in nature. Philosophically, health is rarely regarded an end in itself but rather a prerequisite to a desirable life.
Health has been regarded as a mere adaptation to environmental challenge. This notion may be limited in that it is purely reactive, thus neglecting the active properties of health which enable growth and thriving.
According to Forrest (2014), previous definitions of health failed to examine the constituent parts of health itself. What are the individual aspects of health and how do they interact to produce the features generally attributed to health? Adopting a living systems perspective, Forrest (2014) includes such 'assets' into an examination of health. This conceptualisation is rested upon fundamental notions of living systems theory; Living systems are energetically open systems which are in dynamic interaction with their environments, constantly working to reduce internal entropy. They comprise of individual parts which, in interaction with each other, assume a complex systems character, delineating the organism from the environment and maintaining structure of the unit. Hierarchical arrangements are characteristic of complex systems (Kaneko, 2006).
Human beings are a prime example of complex systems and with health being a potential attribute of this system, systems theory justifies an investigation into the hierarchically subservient parts, or 'assets', of health. Accordingly, these 'assets' would dynamically interact with each other and the environment to produce emergent properties of health (Forrest, 2014).
Forrest (2014) proposes to organise the assets of health along five dimensions: energetics, restoration, mind,
reproduction, and capabilities (see Table 1).
Properties of each asset depend on a multitude of processes at cell, tissue and organ level. For example, an individual's capacity to recover from tissue injury can be classified as a restoration asset. Amongst others, it would depend on current immune function, blood clotting properties, previous tissue state etc. The restoration asset will then, for example, also depend on the organism's oxygen metabolism; part of the energetics dimension.
[INSERT TABLE]
[TABLE CAPTION: Living systems theory suggests that 'health' as a property of a complex system needs to be examined for both its constituent parts and for the emergent properties resulting from interaction between them and the environment. Individual dimensions of health interact to produce emergent properties of health. Individually, they depend upon cell, tissue and organ properties and on each other.]
The energetics dimension comprises physiological processes concerned with the overall energy metabolism and more specifically electrolyte balance, water, gas and nutrient metabolism. It can be generally seen to make up the person’s physical fitness level.
The restoration dimension of health includes all these processes that allow the organism to withstand and recover from daily environmental insults. Radiation, chemical and mechanical factors are potentially harmful and so are psychological stressors or pathogens. The skin is just one example of tissues designed to defend the body against those insults.
The ability to reproduce is a defining factor for any species. For human beings this health asset also comprises their sexuality and the ability to pursue sexually oriented needs and goals. Mind, according to Forrest (2014),is the process of knowing. Mind assets offer the ability to sense data in the environment through sensory systems. Also, we need to perceive our emotions, understand the meaning of sensory and emotional data to create information that can be interpreted individually Experience accumulated through this process eventually informs our actions when re-exposed to similar information: we learn. and with accumulated experience, knowledge accrues as we learn from repeated exposure to the same type of information.’ (p. 212)
Finally, ‘capability’ is what enables a healthy being to engage with their environment in a motivated and fulfilling manner. As such, what exactly comprises somebody’s capability requirements is highly dependent on individual history, life experience, values and beliefs, but also on overall cultural, political and economic context. Processes supporting communication, mobility and social interaction fall within this dimension (Forrest, 2014).
Complex systems, and human beings in particular, are special in that they not only possess adaptation mechanisms to interact with their environment, they also possess mind, which enables them to experience and learn from experience. Any examination of health and its assets will thus have to include such biography-dependent features. This notion ties in with the resource concept previously discussed in an osteopathic context, where health can only be understood as a dynamic and evolutionary process. The personal experience of health is itself an emergent property of the lived experience of individual dimension qualities, past and present and always in an environmental context.
Based upon the above complex system analysis, Forrest (2014) proposes a new definition of health:
'Health enables individuals to adapt to their physical and social environments, satisfy their needs, attain their goals, and live long lives free from distress and suffering' (p. 212).
Here, health is regarded philosophically as a means to other, individual and biological, ends. A passive adaptation component of health is acknowledged, but is not exclusive of active aspects, which enable individuals to grow, develop and reproduce. Adopting a complex systems perspective allows for a more appropriate examination of the constituent parts comprising health, thus enabling the osteopathic practitioner to appreciate both the role of parts and the non-linear emergence of system properties.
References for this section:
Forrest, C.B. (2014). A living systems perspective on health. Medical Hypotheses. 82: 209–214
Kaneko, K. (2006): Life: An Introduction to Complex Systems Biology (Understanding Complex Systems). New York: Springer.
Morphogenetic fields. The task: To work a recent paper into an existing chapter on morphogenetic fields. My contribution:
Morphogenetic fields, according to Goodwin, are above all chemical-mechanical-genetic fields.i In fact there are also a number of physical factors implicated in the development and maintenance of shape in organisms; Apart from sequence and pattern of gene expression, gradients of mechanical, biochemical and bioelectrical nature are thought to play a role.ii,iii,iv,v. These processes have characteristic spatial and temporal properties, potentially representing morphogenetic fields. Specific signals of ion flux are deemed to trigger patterning cascades resulting in pre-conceived shapes,vi,vii,viii,ixthe information of which is not specifically contained in the initial signal itself, but instead present as morphogenetic fields. Accordingly, physiological processes have some form of 'memory', similar to memory stored in neuroelectrical circuits.ii
It is suggested that emergent structures and properties cannot be predicted from the properties of the individual (initial) signal or cellii Such a top-down view on physiological processes echoes modern complex-system thinking and is in contrast to traditional biochemistry that strives to decipher individual molecular processes.x We thus enter the realm of scientific and philosophical debate, asking at which level – molecular, cellular, tissue, organ etc. - research can render results beneficial to the understanding of morphogenesis and morphostasis.
The bioelectrical processes that are thought to determine physical shape take place after DNA translation and can thus be coordinated between cells of different genetic states. This allows for tissue- and organ-wide harmonisation of morphogenesis and morphostasis.ii As apparent from cancer research, examination of genetic coding alone only does not render data sufficient for the understanding of complex patterning.xi Rather, epigenetic considerations, i.e. physiological processes in a tissue and host context, are crucial.ii For example, cells are significantly more likely to become cancerous when separated from their neighbouring cells.xii
The fields of embryogenesis, regeneration and oncology inform this hypothesis and indeed there is a practical relevance to the understanding of morphogenetic fields; Understanding which specific signal triggers certain morphogenetic cascades for example, could contribute to regenerating damaged tissue.ii
i Goodwin BC: What are the causes of morphogenesis? Bioessays. 1985; 3(1):32–36.
iiLevin M: Morphogenetic fields in embryogenesis, regeneration, and cancer: Non-local
control of complex patterning. Biosystems. Sep 2012;109(3):243-61.
iiiMcCaig CD, Rajnicek, AM, Song B, Zhao, M: Controlling cell behavior electrically:
current views and future potential. Physiol. Rev. 2008;85:943–978.
ivRajnicek AM, Foubister LE, McCaig CD: Prioritising guidance cues: directional migration induced by substratum contours and electrical gradients is controlled by a rho/cdc42 switch. Dev. Biol. 2007;312, 448–460.
vYao L, Pandit A, Yao S, McCaig CD: Electric field-guided neuron migration:
a novel approach in neurogenesis. Tissue Eng. Part B Rev. 2011;17:143–153.
viBlackiston DJ, McLaughlin KA, Levin M: Bioelectric controls of cell proliferation:
ion channels, membrane voltage and the cell cycle. Cell Cycle 2009;8:3519–3528.
viiKunzelmann K: Ion channels and cancer. J. Membr. Biol. 2005;205:159–173.
viiiVandenberg LN, Morrie RD, Adams, DS. V-ATPase-dependent ectodermal voltage and pH regionalization are required for craniofacial morphogenesis. Dev. Dyn. 2011;240:1889–1904.
ixPai VP, Aw S, Shomrat T, Lemire JM, Levin M: Transmembrane voltage potential controls embryonic eye patterning in Xenopus laevis. Development. 2012;139:313–323.
xKaneko, K: Life: An Introduction to Complex Systems Biology (Understanding Complex Systems). New York: Springer; 2006.
xiHuang S, Ernberg I, Kauffman, S: Cancer attractors: a systems view of tumors from a gene network dynamics and developmental perspective. Semin. Cell Dev. Biol. 2009;20:869–876.
xiiMesnil M, Crespin S, Avanzo JL, Zaidan-Dagli M: Defective gap junctional intercellular communication in the carcinogenic process. Biochim. Biophys. Acta. 2005;1719:125–145.
Morphogenetic fields, according to Goodwin, are above all chemical-mechanical-genetic fields.i In fact there are also a number of physical factors implicated in the development and maintenance of shape in organisms; Apart from sequence and pattern of gene expression, gradients of mechanical, biochemical and bioelectrical nature are thought to play a role.ii,iii,iv,v. These processes have characteristic spatial and temporal properties, potentially representing morphogenetic fields. Specific signals of ion flux are deemed to trigger patterning cascades resulting in pre-conceived shapes,vi,vii,viii,ixthe information of which is not specifically contained in the initial signal itself, but instead present as morphogenetic fields. Accordingly, physiological processes have some form of 'memory', similar to memory stored in neuroelectrical circuits.ii
It is suggested that emergent structures and properties cannot be predicted from the properties of the individual (initial) signal or cellii Such a top-down view on physiological processes echoes modern complex-system thinking and is in contrast to traditional biochemistry that strives to decipher individual molecular processes.x We thus enter the realm of scientific and philosophical debate, asking at which level – molecular, cellular, tissue, organ etc. - research can render results beneficial to the understanding of morphogenesis and morphostasis.
The bioelectrical processes that are thought to determine physical shape take place after DNA translation and can thus be coordinated between cells of different genetic states. This allows for tissue- and organ-wide harmonisation of morphogenesis and morphostasis.ii As apparent from cancer research, examination of genetic coding alone only does not render data sufficient for the understanding of complex patterning.xi Rather, epigenetic considerations, i.e. physiological processes in a tissue and host context, are crucial.ii For example, cells are significantly more likely to become cancerous when separated from their neighbouring cells.xii
The fields of embryogenesis, regeneration and oncology inform this hypothesis and indeed there is a practical relevance to the understanding of morphogenetic fields; Understanding which specific signal triggers certain morphogenetic cascades for example, could contribute to regenerating damaged tissue.ii
i Goodwin BC: What are the causes of morphogenesis? Bioessays. 1985; 3(1):32–36.
iiLevin M: Morphogenetic fields in embryogenesis, regeneration, and cancer: Non-local
control of complex patterning. Biosystems. Sep 2012;109(3):243-61.
iiiMcCaig CD, Rajnicek, AM, Song B, Zhao, M: Controlling cell behavior electrically:
current views and future potential. Physiol. Rev. 2008;85:943–978.
ivRajnicek AM, Foubister LE, McCaig CD: Prioritising guidance cues: directional migration induced by substratum contours and electrical gradients is controlled by a rho/cdc42 switch. Dev. Biol. 2007;312, 448–460.
vYao L, Pandit A, Yao S, McCaig CD: Electric field-guided neuron migration:
a novel approach in neurogenesis. Tissue Eng. Part B Rev. 2011;17:143–153.
viBlackiston DJ, McLaughlin KA, Levin M: Bioelectric controls of cell proliferation:
ion channels, membrane voltage and the cell cycle. Cell Cycle 2009;8:3519–3528.
viiKunzelmann K: Ion channels and cancer. J. Membr. Biol. 2005;205:159–173.
viiiVandenberg LN, Morrie RD, Adams, DS. V-ATPase-dependent ectodermal voltage and pH regionalization are required for craniofacial morphogenesis. Dev. Dyn. 2011;240:1889–1904.
ixPai VP, Aw S, Shomrat T, Lemire JM, Levin M: Transmembrane voltage potential controls embryonic eye patterning in Xenopus laevis. Development. 2012;139:313–323.
xKaneko, K: Life: An Introduction to Complex Systems Biology (Understanding Complex Systems). New York: Springer; 2006.
xiHuang S, Ernberg I, Kauffman, S: Cancer attractors: a systems view of tumors from a gene network dynamics and developmental perspective. Semin. Cell Dev. Biol. 2009;20:869–876.
xiiMesnil M, Crespin S, Avanzo JL, Zaidan-Dagli M: Defective gap junctional intercellular communication in the carcinogenic process. Biochim. Biophys. Acta. 2005;1719:125–145.