Attracting Abundance

- 104 -

The Law

Belief - XVI

Our Cellular Biology - XV

Cells may be self-sustaining units of life, but they don't live in isolation. Their survival depends on receiving and processing information from the outside environment, whether the information pertains to the availability of nutrients, changes in temperature, or variation in light levels.

Cells can also communicate with one another - and change their internal response - by way of variety of mechanical and chemical signals. In multi-cellular organisms, cell signalling allows for specialization of groups of cells. Multiple cell types can then join together to form tissues such as muscle, blood, and brain tissue. Individual cells often receive many signals simultaneously, and they then integrate the information they receive into a unified action plan. It is not that the cells only receive signals. they send out signals to other cells, near and far.

Most cell signals are chemical in nature. Hormones, neurotransmitters, growth factors, Extra Cellular Matrix Components etc. are examples of chemical signals.

Note: Hormone is a regulatory substance produced in an organism and transported in tissue fluids such as blood or sap to stimulate specific cells or tissues into action.

Note: Neurotransmitter is a chemical that is released from a nerve cell which thereby transmits an impulse from a nerve cell to another nerve, muscle, organ, or other tissue. A neurotransmitter is a messenger of neurologic information from one cell to another. 

Note: Growth Factor is a substance, such as a vitamin or hormone, which is required for the stimulation of growth in living cells.

Note: Extra Cellular Matrix Components: Living tissues are not just accumulations of tightly packed cells. Much of a tissue's volume is made up of extracellular space ('extra-' meaning 'outside' or 'beyond,' as in 'extraterrestrial'). This void is filled with a complex mesh-work called the extracellular matrix.

Rather than being inert filler material, like the Styrofoam packing around a shipment of glassware, the extracellular matrix is a dynamic, physiologically active component of all living tissues. In addition to providing structural support for the cells embedded within a tissue, the extracellular matrix guides their division, growth, and development. In other words, the extracellular matrix largely determines how a tissue looks and functions.

The extracellular matrix is made up of proteoglycans, water, minerals, and fibrous proteins. A proteoglycan is composed of a protein core surrounded by long chains of starch-like molecules called glycosaminoglycans.

These substances can exert their influence locally, or they might travel over long distances. For example, neurotransmitters are a class of short-range signalling molecules that travel across the tiny spaces between neurons or between neurons and muscle cells. Other signalling molecules must move much farther to reach their targets. One example is follicle-stimulating hormone, which travels from the mammalian brain to the ovary, where it triggers egg release.

Note: A neuron is a nerve cell that is the basic building block of the nervous system. Neurons are similar to other cells in the human body in a number of ways, but there is one key difference between neurons and other cells. Neurons are specialized to transmit information throughout the body.

These highly specialized nerve cells are responsible for communicating information in both chemical and electrical forms.

There are also several different types of neurons responsible for different tasks in the human body.

Sensory neurons carry information from the sensory receptor cells throughout the body to the brain. Motor neurons transmit information from the brain to the muscles of the body. Interneurons are responsible for communicating information between different neurons in the body.

 Differences that make neurons unique:

- Unlike other body cells, neurons stop reproducing shortly after birth. Because of this, some parts of the brain have more neurons at birth than later in life because neurons die but are not replaced. While neurons do not reproduce in most areas of the brain, research has shown that new connections between neurons form throughout life. Neurogenesis, or the formation of new nerve cells, does occur in some parts of the brain throughout life.

- Neurons have a membrane that is designed to send information to other cells. The axon and dendrite are specialized structures designed to transmit and receive information. The connections between cells are known as synapses. Neurons release chemicals known as neurotransmitters into these synapses to communicate with other neurons.

We will look at the structure of neurons in the next post

Some cells also respond to mechanical stimulii. For example, sensory cells in the skin respond to pressure of touch, whereas similar cells in the ear react to movement of sound waves. In addition, specialized cells in the human vascular system detect changes in blood pressure - information that the body uses to maintain a consistent cardiac load.

Note: The Vascular system is the body's network of blood vessels. It includes the arteries, veins and capillaries that carry blood to and from the heart.

The receptor proteins in cells bind to signalling molecules and initiate a physiological response. Different receptors are specific for different molecules Dopamine receptors bind dopamine, insulin receptors bind insulin, nerve growth factor receptors bind nerve growth factor, and so on. In fact there are hundreds of receptor types found in cells., and varying cell types have different population of receptors. Receptors can also directly respond to light and pressure, which makes cells sensitive to events in the atmosphere. 

Receptors are generally trans-membrane proteins, which bind to signaling molecules outside the cell and subsequently transmit the signal through a sequence of molecular switches to internal signaling pathways.

Note: A Molecular switches is a molecule that can be reversibly shifted between two or more stable states. The molecules may be shifted between the states in response to environmental stimuli, such as changes in pH, light, temperature, an electric current, etc. 

We will continue with receptors and neurons in the next post.

Meanwhile see cell signaling in this interesting video

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1996-98 Germany Adidas Woven Presentation Jacket M/L

Condition of jacket - Excellent

Size - Medium/Large (40-42")

Condition details - Bright colours, nice material feel with some light bobbling, badges are stitched

Made by - Adidas

Players - Klinsmann, Sammer, Kuntz, Bierhoff, Moller

Notes - Very rare woven presentation jacket as worn by the squad at Euro 96 when the side famously beat England on penalties in the Semi-Finals and won the competition with victory over the Czech Republic in the Final thanks to an Oliver Bierhoff golden goal.

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Watch the video of the Oliver Bierhoff golden goal: