Seed a Potential tool to for Research

A way to manipulate biological information to human advantage 

This was an accidental discovery - a path nature revealed to my questioning process. It occurred during the initial period of my research career when I was trying to clone some highly difficult commercial plants.  I had failed to elicit any results and I was totally frustrated. I had no body to fallback  for support and guidance. Just when I was about give up, Mother Nature called me. I developed a strange form of communication with nature that led me to reviewing everything I am doing. Looking back on my work, I found that what I am trying to do in the lab is to find the internal secrets of plants system. The perquisite to my success lies in developing a media and microenvironment that supports the plant system in hand. In nature, I could clearly sense an instinct among living system to survive. I realized that I am trying to exploit this survival instinct. My searching senses once landed on a seed and I was astonished at the rate of growth it produces once the germination was induced. I also noted the immense power in it to handle the stress force. This observation is related to stored food and hormones in the system to facilitate growth. This led me to conduct a curious experiment.

I cut off the shoot, root meristems in germinating seed of cashew, and maintained it in a moist environment.  My argument was that since the plants are totipotent, the circumstances should lead to a situation where some cells with in the system should regenerate, shoot or root meristem or dedifferentiate to form embryoid which in turn would give rise to shoot and root meristem.  My argument turned right. Within in few days large number of shoots emerged from the axil of the cotyledons and a ring of roots appeared at the cut end. See fig.  

The section studies showed that they emerged from the single cells. The initial development showed a tendency to form embryoid, but quickly yields to the force of the existing parental system and its survival instinct, adding new shoots and roots to the whole system. The individual shoots could be isolated and rooted in- vitro. It was also isolated and rooted in glass house conditions to obtain complete plantlets. This curious experiment was a turning point, which led me to explore the dynamics of living system and explore seed as dynamic system of immense potential for application. It is beyond this article to explore it at length. I hope to add them to the site as time permits. However, let me share here the framework. 

My observation led me to discover two principal forces that control the plant system. One is against gravity and the other is anti-gravity.  See fig

I noted that all living system are by instinct is anti-gravitational. This becomes evident when we apply second law of thermodynamics to living system and material system.

The newly formed embryoid like structure in the above experiment yielded to this principal force of the parental system to which the developing embryoid is attached. The newly differentiating embryoids under the influence of the parental systems force cohered to support the mother system than taking the independent existence.

 In all the different type of plant seeds I explored, I observed the principal force that is first expressed is the Anti gravitational force that is manifested as shoot meristem growing against gravity. The root meristem has a supporting role. The growth of shoot is supported by a phase of root growth. [Except in the beginning].  In other words the root and shoot growth alternates.

I tilted the axis of the experimental system against the axis of the gravitational force. In other words, I tilted the axis of the experimental system in relation to the gravitational axis of earth system. The response of the parental system producing independent shoots and roots showed changes. As I tilted the system beyond certain critical state, the cells in the periphery of the cotilidonary axis produced complete plant lets with root and shoot that could be isolated and planted. See figure. The tilting also appeared to split the ring of roots and shoot into four as if there is two opposing waves are acting. The tilting produced cohering of the shoots into bundles. The number of bundles appears to present the impression of an alternating compressed and light band produces by a wave. That led me to visualize that some form of spiral wave is acting within the system.

The human mind in me saw many possibilities to exploit the above observation

1] As model to study the mechanical force at work in biological system.

2] As a model to study the effect of various chemicals on particular system, such that time taken to determine suitable medium and hormones for particular system is drastically reduced.

3] As a model to invent new chemicals that produces auxin and cytokinin effect in plant system.

4] A model to develop stress resistant variety very quickly

5] A model to develop quickly and safely genetically altered information.

6] To enhance the growth of embryoids, which differentiated in the tissue culture but are failing to grow in the medium.

7] To develop hybrid embryos when the system fails to support it internally,

There were countless other ideas that emerged

Thoughts in this area even led me to visualize the process of cloning adopted in developing “dolly” [the first animal clone], much before Dolly was developed. It was a natural conclusion that came to me when I extended the seed model back to zero. Being in a ill equipped lab working against odds, all the ideas remained as research programs to be explored once I submitted my doctoral thesis. Unfortunately, destiny had something in store for me as, as I encountered the tempest of human greed for power and fame at all cost. There were only two choices to me

1] Be with my consciousness, take a straight path, face the tempest, and loose my doctorate degree and an independent niche in science.

2] Sacrifice my consciousness and my identity by submitting to the negative forces to obtain doctorate degree and possibility of obtaining a good job and independent niche. 

I had put too much heart into my work to allow negative force to dictate terms. My instinctive young blood chose to oppose revolt and fight, than to yield to it.

My decision cost a return to root, without a lab to work and financial support to explore my ideas. However, my heart and mind was full of spirit and was still alive and bubbling. It found in nature a lab and wealth in the spirit of my mind and heart. Thus, I began the mental exercise searching the secret of nature and the answers to unanswered questions and paradoxes of science. The exercise culminated in the development of new foundation to science and all that is dealt in the site and that which is going to come, if His will [the spirit that guided me] permits.

[The plant obtained in the above manner was successfully transferred to the soil. It formed the basis for obtaining a huge funding to the lab from the government and getting recognition to the Lab. After I left the lab, I  saw the  human greed for fame name manifesting at at its height level both cheating oneself and the whole world. I witnessed my work  presented to public by  a cabinet minister. The national dailies carried the picture of cabinet minister transferring the plant obtained in the above manner to the field, with much fanfare as if a milestone is achieved in cloning cashew.  The real potential of the work conducted remained with me for want of out lets to explore. Being preoccupied with Unification Theory I could not divert my attention  to it. The work on cashew cloning will be dealt in detail later on.]