Rhys Mould (2023) Biophotonics & electromagnetic fields in cellular communications and bioenergetics
Full title: The role of biophotonics and electromagnetic fields in cellular communications and bioenergetics.
Dr Rhys Mould, Research Centre for Optimal Health, University of Westminster.
The Guy Foundation 2023 Spring Series.
Abstract
Cells emit light – UV-Visible photons produced at a very low intensity. These emissions are a result of interactions between Reactive Oxygen Species (ROS) and nearby biomolecules, including proteins or lipids. As ROS themselves are by-products of metabolism, the intensity of emission is too tied to the metabolic state of a cell – hence our term Metabolic Photon Emission (MPE). The roles of MPE, also known as biophotons and ultraweak photon emission, remain unclear. In 1923, pioneering scientist Alexander Gurwitsch, in the famous onion root experiments, presented evidence that chemically-isolated cells could communicate via electromagnetic signals, giving rise to the hypothesis that MPE facilitates non-chemical communication. Despite the potential to change our understanding of signalling, the field struggled to proliferate due to multiple reasons, including difficulty detecting and characterizing these photons. To study this further, we investigated potential non-chemical communication between isolated mitochondria – the chief source of ROS and therefore MPE in the cell. Separating mitochondria into individual quartz cuvettes, we found that inducing oxidative stress in one population significantly alters the bioenergetics in another. This was not observed when the populations were divided by an opaque barrier, indicating that the observed effect is mediated by light. We also show that the effect changes when the mitochondria are isolated from cancer cells, and when the experiments are carried out protected from ambient light. Altogether, we provide strong evidence that mitochondria are capable of MPE-based non-chemical communication over long distances. Our results highlight the importance of further study, and that we may yet unlock further understanding in how cells can communicate.
Read the full 2023 Spring Series Proceedings here - https://www.theguyfoundation.org/wp-c...
Start: 00:00
Professor Alistair Nunn (introduction): 02:34
Dr Rhys Mould: 16:27
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