Cell Language Theory : Connecting Mind and Matter

 

This book represents the results of 45 years of research on a wide range of topics, including atomic physics, single-molecule enzymology, whole-cell metabolism, physiology, pharmacology, linguistics, semiotics, and cosmology. It describes the first comprehensive molecular theory of the genotype-phenotype coupling based on two key theoretical concepts: (i) the conformon, the conformational wave packet in biopolymers carrying both the free energy and genetic information; and (ii) the intracellular dissipative structures, the chemical concentration waves inside the cell that serve as the immediate drivers of all cell functions. Conformons provide the driving forces for all molecular machines in the cell, and intracellular dissipative structures coordinate intra- and intercellular processes such as gene expression and cell-cell communications.

One of the predictions made by the cell language theory (CLT) is that there are two forms of genetic information — the Watson–Crick genes transmitting information in time (identified with DNA), and the Prigoginian genes transmitting information in space (identified with RNA expression profiles). The former is analogous to sheet music or written language and the latter is akin to audio music or spoken language, both being coupled by conformons acting as the analog of the pianist. The new theory of DNA structure and function constructed on the basis of CLT can rationally account for most of the puzzling findings recently unearthed by the ENCODE (Encyclopedia of DNA Elements) project.

The Cell Language Theory has important applications in biomedical sciences including drug discovery research and personalized medicine on the one hand and in the mind-body research and consciousness studies on the other.

This book describes the first molecular theory of the genotype-phenotype coupling (or cell language) based on two key concepts: (i) the conformon, the packet of free energy and genetic information stored in biopolymers; and (ii) the intracellular dissipative structures, the concentration gradients in the cell that drive all cell functions. Conformons provide the driving forces for all molecular machines in the cell including ATP-dependent chromatin remodeling proteins, and dissipative structures coordinate cell-wide processes such as gene expression and cell cycle.One prediction of the new theory is that there are two forms of genetic information the Watson Crick genes transmitting information in time (identified with DNA), and the Prigoginian genes transmitting information in space (identified with RNA expression profiles). The former is analogous to sheet music or written language, the latter is akin to audio music or spoken language, and conformons act as the pianist. The new theory of DNA structure and function can rationally account for most of the puzzling findings recently unearthed by the ENCODE (Encyclopedia of DNA Elements) project.The cell language theory described in this book, coupled with high-throughput experimental data and computational methods, is expected to facilitate the practical applications of cell biological knowledge to biomedical sciences, including diagnosis, therapeutics, and drug discovery.