Eric Lagasse Michael Levin
Trends in Molecular Medicine
The remarkable anatomical homeostasis exhibited by complex living organisms suggests
that they are inherently reprogrammable information-processing systems that offer
numerous interfaces to their physiological and anatomical problem-solving capacities.
We briefly review data suggesting that the multiscale competency of living forms affords
a new path for biomedicine that exploits the innate collective intelligence of tissues
and organs. The concept of tissue-level allostatic goal-directedness is already bearing
fruit in clinical practice. We sketch a roadmap towards ‘somatic psychiatry’ by using
advances in bioelectricity and behavioral neuroscience to design methods that induce
self-repair of structure and function. Relaxing the assumption that cellular control
mechanisms are static, exploiting powerful concepts from cybernetics, behavioral science,
and developmental biology may spark definitive solutions to current biomedical challenges.
Read the full article at: www.cell.com
Complexity Digest 