There is a natural biological mechanism in our bodies that prevents the arterial plaque formation. The only problem is how we can keep it running smoothly.
Doc: What about extracting a person's own M2 macrophages, multiplying them and then infusing them back into the blood? That's simplistic, I know, because of the signaling issues involved. Or if we know exactly how the M2 macrophages reduce plaques, perhaps create bio-nanoparticles that do the same thing but can't be switched off; once they home in on a plaque, they just dissolve it or eat it away until it dissolves? I know there would be the risk of it breaking loose at a certain point but there's that now, and leaving it alone eventually wreaks havoc anyway. This is an engineering and SIGINT problem. Hard to believe creative solutions haven't been found.
Unfortunately the pharmaceutical industry is profit-driven and it benefits them more to address an issue partially (while raking in huge profits) without looking at how to actually deal with the root issue.
Also to note that the M2 macrophages themselves will undergo reproduction and produce new macrophage cells, which will then thereafter differentiate into M1 or M2 themselves based on the prevailing inflammation signal. Controlling that bioprocess is not easy on its own!
As kids, we used to play the telephone game to relay messages from one person all the way to the end of the line.
You can always bet that the original message would have been completely destroyed by the time it reached the person at the end of the line.
All it needs is one signal at the start of the game to go wrong (or some guy just wanting to prank the rest of the team) and you'll get that final end result. Even if everyone is trying to play it with the best intentions, something will always go wrong somewhere.
Well put. It's amazing the human body even functions with how exquisitely delicate and sophisticated it is, how, as you state so clearly, "All it needs is one signal at the start of the game to go wrong...." You have a gift for making the incredibly complex simple enough to be understood. Thank you!
Doc: What about extracting a person's own M2 macrophages, multiplying them and then infusing them back into the blood? That's simplistic, I know, because of the signaling issues involved. Or if we know exactly how the M2 macrophages reduce plaques, perhaps create bio-nanoparticles that do the same thing but can't be switched off; once they home in on a plaque, they just dissolve it or eat it away until it dissolves? I know there would be the risk of it breaking loose at a certain point but there's that now, and leaving it alone eventually wreaks havoc anyway. This is an engineering and SIGINT problem. Hard to believe creative solutions haven't been found.
Hi George,
Unfortunately the pharmaceutical industry is profit-driven and it benefits them more to address an issue partially (while raking in huge profits) without looking at how to actually deal with the root issue.
Also to note that the M2 macrophages themselves will undergo reproduction and produce new macrophage cells, which will then thereafter differentiate into M1 or M2 themselves based on the prevailing inflammation signal. Controlling that bioprocess is not easy on its own!
Thank you, Doctor. More and more issues seem to be coming down to signaling. Maybe ultimately they all do....
They always were.
As kids, we used to play the telephone game to relay messages from one person all the way to the end of the line.
You can always bet that the original message would have been completely destroyed by the time it reached the person at the end of the line.
All it needs is one signal at the start of the game to go wrong (or some guy just wanting to prank the rest of the team) and you'll get that final end result. Even if everyone is trying to play it with the best intentions, something will always go wrong somewhere.
Well put. It's amazing the human body even functions with how exquisitely delicate and sophisticated it is, how, as you state so clearly, "All it needs is one signal at the start of the game to go wrong...." You have a gift for making the incredibly complex simple enough to be understood. Thank you!