Camping in a place surrounded by nature while relaxing our eyes, gazing at the horizon, and feeling the cool breeze caressing our faces has a calming physiological effect on the body, mind, and spirit. This is all thanks to an unseen, yet powerful agent: fresh air.
The atmosphere, which contains all the breathable oxygen for humans and the natural world living on the surface of earth, could be described as a less dense version of water. God called it the expansion of heavens. Genesis describes how God spoke and separated the water from the water, leaving a gap of air in the middle. This is the water form we breathe.
The oxygen present in the air we breathe is managed by life forms on Earth that break down water molecules and release oxygen as a gas. These oxygen managers are trees and plants.
Dr. Gary Samuelson tells us about his studies on this topic as follows. All plant cells that perform photosynthesis use the sun’s light energy to split water molecules. The sunlight captured by the plant cells provides the energy to separate two oxygen atoms from the water molecules and transform them into a free radical called superoxide (O2*-). The hydrogen atoms from the water are stored for later use. In a cascade of energy release, the superoxide is transformed into hydrogen peroxide (H2O2), or what we commonly know as oxygenated water, and finally into a molecule of oxygen gas (O2). The energy released from this cascade is used by plant cells to bond hydrogen atoms to carbon atoms to form carbohydrates (sugars), fats, and oils. These are stored and used as fuel. Note that superoxide, hydrogen peroxide, and the oxygen produced by photosynthesis are components of reactive oxygen species (ROS), which we call redox-signaling molecules. Plants also use these redox signaling molecules, almost exclusively, to help detect, repair, and replace their own damaged cells and tissues, and to power their immune systems. The resulting oxygen gas produced by plant cells is then released into the atmosphere.
Redox-signaling molecules produced in plant cells also help regulate the rate of sugar and fat production within these cells. Too much hydrogen peroxide, for example, is produced when plants are in full sun. This excess hydrogen peroxide is designed to deactivate the machinery and slow down photosynthesis, so as not to overwhelm the plant. In the shade, when the hydrogen peroxide level drops, photosynthesis speeds up again. Therefore, redox-signaling molecules are also used to regulate photosynthesis in plants.
When we eat and digest plants, our bodies use the sugars and fats we obtain from them as fuel. The metabolism of sugar within our cells, combined with the oxygen we breathe, performs the same chemical process in reverse to produce energy (ATP) and also produces ROS such as superoxide and hydrogen peroxide. These molecules recombine, and the end products are water and carbon dioxide (the building blocks for plants), completing the great cycle. In our cells, these redox signaling molecules also help regulate our metabolism and detect, repair, and replace damaged cells. The existence of redox signaling molecules in living cells is as old as oxygen in Earth’s atmosphere. Our bodies require the oxygen, sugars, and fats produced by plants.
In the field of medicine, therapies that utilize oxygen or other types of oxidants and oxidative processes are now emerging. Oxidative therapies include hypersaturation of the body with oxygen using hyperbaric chambers, ozone therapies, hydrogen peroxide, chlorine dioxide, or therapies that stimulate the production of ROS in cells, such as pulsed electromagnetic therapies and infrared light therapies. All of these therapies have the ultimate effect of increasing the amount of ROS produced within living cells. Practitioners are reporting high success rates with these therapies, especially in wound healing, tissue regeneration, and fighting infections. Muscle exercise also has the effect of increasing the amount of ROS created by muscle cells, with largely beneficial healing effects. James Watson, Ph.D. (who won a Nobel Prize for his work in discovering the structure of DNA) has dedicated his life to finding ways to stimulate the production of ROS in cells. He calls ROS “the elixir of life against stressed cells.” Cellular ROS holds the cure for diabetes, many types of cancer, and dementia.
The question has been raised: Is ROS an absolute requirement for tissue regeneration? In order to find out, researchers took a look at the regeneration of tadpole tails. Tadpoles have the ability to regenerate their tails if they are cut off. Tadpoles are also partially transparent. This allows ROS to be seen inside the tadpole when revealed with special fluorescent dyes. In experiments, it was observed that ROS is super-concentrated along the growth edges of the regenerating tail. When ROS was artificially removed by applying a strong antioxidant to the tail (vitamin C), the tail did not regrow.
We could also ask the question, is ROS an absolute requirement within living cells? It is now understood that in the place where proteins are manufactured within the cell (the endoplasmic reticulum), ROS is used to help fold and build proteins correctly. A lack of ROS within the cell has been shown to ultimately cause proteins to be incorrectly constructed, leading to disease. Proteins are the micromachines that make the cell function; they contain bonds (disulfide bonds) that can only be broken and reformed by the action of ROS. Without ROS, these micromachines cannot function.
The famous master antioxidant in the cell, glutathione (GSH), contains a hydrogen sulfide (SH) thiol that is sensitive to ROS. ROS can extract the hydrogen and cause the sticky sulfur bonds in two GSH molecules to combine to form oxidized glutathione (GSSG, the SS indicates the disulfide bond). The oxidation of glutathione when it’s in its super suit (called glutathione peroxidase) requires ROS. This is true for other important players in the cell, such as thioredoxin. Without ROS, these super machines cannot function.
Therefore, it turns out that ROS creates homeostatic balance and is absolutely essential for the proper functioning of the cell in many areas and on many occasions, especially in the machinery that repairs and regenerates cells and tissues. It was amazing to discover the power of ROS, which is important in all aspects of cellular life, from photosynthesis to sugar metabolism, the detection, repair, and replacement of damaged cells, tissue regeneration, immune activation, and protein production.
God is definitely wonderful and wise. He gave us water to drink and fresh air to breathe. Maybe we need a little spark jump to light up our day today.
Sources: drgarysamuelson.com