9. The electricity and living body

The work "Electrobiology" makes people immediately think about the electric-fish. The electromotive force of some fish has many hundreds of volts, but how has such voltage been generated? It is considered as piezoelectricity which is generated by deformation of the cells when the muscles are contracted and/or expanded.

Above all electrocardiogram is the first instrument that has shown the contraction and expansion of human body electrically. In the cardiogram we can notice that T wave varies in accordance with the pose of the test-human body. When the human body is standing, the blood tends to move down to legs by the natural gravity. Then, in order to raise the blood to higher position, the network of sympathetic nervous system is stimulated and causes formation of hypopotassium which decreases the height of T wave in the cardiogram.

However, present medical science is incapable of explaining why the natural gravity stimulates the network of the sympathetic nervous system.

Here I set up an assumption as follows: "The piezoelectricity must occur in the protein as well as in the cells."

In order to prove this assumption, Frofessor Hiroshi Kobayashi of Waseda University has performed experiment to observe piczoelectricity of various materials constituting the livin body, by using ultra sound waves.

The piezoelectricity of bones and some other solid matters of the living body has been easily observed, but it was difficult to observe that of protein in liquid form. The piezoelectricity must be generated in the liquid state protein also, but it will be discharged very quickly for the protein has a high electric conductivity. Mother Nature, probably, has created the protein to have such good electric conductivity for some purpose.

Recently an American scholar has reported that the mechanism of antenna of living beings functions on the piezoelectricity and the same mechanism is acting on the bones of body to keep the bones in most suitable and strong forms or shapes structurally. When the bone is loaded with heavy weight, it will be bended. Then, the calcium of the convexed side of the bended bone will be melted partially by the effect of the piezoelectricity. On the contrary, the calcium will be precipitated on the concaved side where it is considered to be negatively charged. Thus the shapes of the bones are maintained properly for the purpose of their usage in each respective position.

The teeth of the living body are suppesed to be grown up with the aid of piezoelectricitgr generated on the chewing muscles during the process of biting and or chewing. By applying the same assumption, it would be easy to understand why the roots of deciduous teeth, especially of human beings, disappear gradually on the growth of adult teeth.

The esaistence of piezoelectricity in living body is important for our study from the qualitative and quantitative standpoints, however we should not overlook its effect on directional means. The natural gravity which is acting on the definite direction can be considered as a special godsend compass for the living body to perceive the direction.