The Connective Tissue

A system of basic regulation

"Fetal Tissue Therapy" Lecture: Wolfgang Hauser 23.10.1992

Over 200 years ago it was discovered that the connective tissue has more functions thanthose of supporting and filling. In the service of specific organ functions it is responsiblefor nutrition and regeneration and mediates nervous and vascular functions.

Before Virchow's Cell Law, diseases were considered to be alterations of the body fluids.Since Hippocrates one distinguished between blood, mucus, black and yellow bile. Theright mixture was the basis for health (eucrasia) and the disturbed mixture the basis forillness (dyscrasia).

The humoral theory, developed an this basis by a contemporary of Virchow (Germanpathologist), was rapidly superseded by Virchow's cellular pathology.

After 1945 Pischinger and colleagues have taken up again the doctrine of fluids as asystem of the basic regulation and investigated it with scientific methods. They, again,categorized the cell within the functional triad "capillary - ground substance -cell". Thiswas necessary as modern medicine, by applying the Virchow's cellular paradigm, can findcauses for and repair acute diseases and those caused by microorganisms but not theincreasing number of chronic, civilizational and cancerous diseases.

In a large number of publications it has been proven that biological systems are highlyinterwoven and subject to a dynamic balance. There is an interrelationship between cellsan their surroundings, forming a functional unit. This is a highly interwoven open systemwhere energy and matter are exchanged.

When an open system is supplied with non-chaotic energy, as for example nutrients, thisenergy extends in no time to the entire system.

This process, autocatalytically, gives rise to new structures.

It was realized that the most suitable form of energy for giving structure and order to abiological system consists of the supply and processing of information. Information is notrestricted to any particular energy carrier. It is thanks to Pischinger that the groundsubstance, the connective tissue and its regulatory mechanisms were seen to be asuperior principle of order which is the basis of the organism's striving for survival.

This ground substance pervades the entire organism and reaches every cell.Biochemically it is a reticulum consisting of extensively polymeric sugar-proteincomplexes. The transit route of the whole metabolism f rom the capillary to the cell andback runs via a molecular sieve, consisting mainly of proteoglycans, glycosamine glycans,structural glycoproteins, such as collagen, elastin and interweaving glycoproteins, such asfibronectin.

The concentration of proteoglycans, their molecular weight, electrolytes and pH valuedetermine the pore size of the filter.

Pischinger and colleagues found out that the negative charge of the proteoglycans is ofdecisive functional importance. It makes water binding and ion exchange possible. This

ensures isoionic, isotonic and isoosmotic balance in the ground substance. Each change inthe ground substance will change the electrostatic field through oscillations of potential.These oscillations of potential, if strong enough, lead to a cell reaction throughdepolarization of the cell membrane.

In other cell types information is transmitted to cytoplasmatic enzymes by messengersubstances, which are present in the cell membrane.

The information which arrives in the cell nucleus is translated into cell-specific productsby appropriate parts of the genetic code.

The fibrocyte is the regulatory centre of the ground substance. Only the fibrocyte is ableto synthesize a ground substance which is appropriate to the situation. The glycocalix,the fuzzy cell-sugar coat is extremely important for the transmission of information toand from the cell. Together with the glycoproteins and the structural glycoproteins theyare the most important information filters and mediators. The ground substance isconnected with the endocrine gland system through the capillaries. Furthermore, theperipheral autonomic nerve fibres end in the ground substance. Both systems areconnected with each other in the brain stem. The "free" connective tissue cells, such asmast cells, macrophages, leucocytes, influence each other through released cell products,such as for example prostaglandins, interleukins, interferons, proteinases. This results ina highly complex interwoven humoral system.

The psyche is another important factor in this reticulum.

Through being able to transmit and store information by binding water and exchangingions, the ground substance is responsible for regulating homoeostasis.

Special interest should be paid to the frequent formation of radicals which take place dueto electron and proton changes occurring during oxygen metabolism.

The physiological redox potential receives the resulting energy via the ground substance.In the case of circulation disturbances radicals can accumulate and unphysiologicalchanges of the redox potential of the ground substance take place.-In 1983 Pischingerand Perger reported that chronic inflammatory diseases and even tumours can develop ifthese disturbances are prolonged.

Greater interest should be paid to another function of the ground substance.Proteoglycans are able to store nutrients: carbohydrates as glucose and galactose,protein as -NH-groups, fat as carbohydrate chains with residual acids and water, withwater being the most important nutrient. If water content is reduced the proteoglycans,which are originally brush-shaped, fold up and impair the transit routes in the groundsubstance.

In my opinion it is not widely enough known that soft water with high electrical resistanceis healthier than hard water. Of course it has to be water low in minerals or water wheresurplus minerals have been extracted by inverted osmosis.

Wendt has proven that, contrary to the existing doctrine, the organism can store proteinin the form of collagen, proteoglycans and glycosamine glycans in the ground substance.

If the capacity - different in each individual - to catabolise the deposits is disturbed, thetransit routes are increasingly transferred and, among other things, micro- andmacroangiopathies develop.

Wendt also reports that the ratio of collagen to polysaccharides in storage protein is 95%

to 5% whereas in pathological glycoproteins, such as amyloid, ratios of collagen topolysaccharides of 42% to 58% occur. According to Wendt clogging of the groundsubstance can be explained by the fact that storage protein and amyloid can bindnumerous other molecules in varying amou.nts and combinations.

In order to emphasize the importance of this observation I should like to mention someexamples of binding possibilities: immunoglobulins, lipoproteins, albumin, amino acids,glycoproteins, uric acid, cholesterol, harmful substances from the environment, carbonmonoxidehaemoglobin, fibrinogen-complement, various antigenicproteins. Furtherdeposits follow in the basal membrane.

Elmau suggests naming these pathogenic protein deposits in the basal membrane of thecapillaries BASAL MEMBRANOSES. This is a degenerative, not an inflammatory process,during which, secondarily, fat and crystals can be deposited. It is possible to reduce theseprotein deposits by a diet low in proteins. Another function of the connective tissue, muchneglected until now, is its ability to buffer acids by binding protons in place of sodiumcations (Na+) and potassium cations (K+) until they can be excreted.

In the presence of metabolic disturbances, carcinoma and also in the case of malnutrition(e. g. a diet which contains too many proteins and carbohydrates) the excretory organscannot cope with the amount of acids which leads to them being stored in the connectivetissue.

Sander was able to prove this in metabolism investigations. Elmau calles this storageprocess "mesenchymal acidosis" because storage is mainly in the mesenchyme. Theexpression "latent and compensated" is not strong enough for this pathological process.If the protein in the connective tissue cannot buffer any more acids the orgdnismmobilizes the cations of the skeleton, which enhances the development of osteoporosis.

The importance of the connective tissue's function in the pathogenesis of chronic anddegenerative diseases not only has its roots in the fact that it initiates the transmission ofinformation to the cell, the humoral and nervous system but also in the fact that itundergoes functional changes if there are functional disorders in the tissues. Moreover,any disturbance of the regulatory processes at the same time worsens the regulatorycapacity. Of course, this dysfunction will not spread immediately. The serous membranes,septa and fasciae act as isolators and inhibit the spread of information via chargedisplacement. They, nevertheless can be bridged by arteries, veins and lymphaticpathways.

In this context I would like to refer to Schade and Volhard who, decades ago, reported anthe important and multiple tasks of the connective tissue.

As early as 1935 Schade mentioned,in his publication the importance of the "colloidalconnective tissue organ" as a depository of the organism, which occupies theintermediate position in the "three-chamber system" of the organism. He understood bythree-chamber system: vessels - connective tissue - parenchymal cells. He called thecontact area between blood and connective tissue dialytic membrane and the onebetween connective tissue and parenchymal cell osmotic membrane. Volhard called theconnective tissue a kind of PRE-KIDNEY, because all substances usually eliminated withthe urine have to be excreted by the connective tissue or "pre-kidney", before they areexcreted by the kidney. Schade believed the most important task of the connective tissueto be the degradation of acids, originating everywhere in the organism.

This process is supported by the different concentrations of the

cell with a pH value of 6.8,

the connective tissue with a pH value of 7.08 - 7.29

and the blood with a pH value of 7.4 - 7.45.

Bicarbonate has got a key role here, which cannot be discussed due to time constraints.

Pischinger and later Heine considered the ability of the leucocytes to cause physiologicallysis as the "pivot of all natural cures" and regulatory medical measures. Natural curessuch as acupuncture, neural therapy, homoeopathy, oxygen-ozone therapy and manyphysical procedures have to be seen as therapies of order which aim at looseningblockades, regulatory rigidities. In accordance with holistic medicine these are intendedto activate the organism's autotherapeutic potential. The basic regulation which takesplace in the connective tissue plays a key role, therefore has to be included in therapy.

In order to support the basic regulation, water balance, electrolyte, oxygen and acid-basemetabolism have to be checked. Electrolytes, trace-elements, vitamins, antioxidants asradical catchers and the substitution of bicarbonate can have a positive effect anregulation.

Drinking water with a high electric resistance improves the salt balance of the connectivetissue.

A change of diet is also necessary. Of all those recommended by the countless doctrinesand opinions of nutritional apostles a sensible mixed diet containing minimum animalprotein and avoiding the consumption of denatured food, industrial sugar and finelyground white flour has proven to be the one which is best tolerated.

Biological substitution of constituent parts is particularly suitable for intervening in thebasic regulation of the connective tissue. This creates the necessary conditions for furthereffective treatments. Biological substitution of constituent parts I understand to be,above all, the implantation of MESENCHYME, the fetal connective tissue, which has themost powerful immunomodulating properties. I have also been using it for over twodecades as a anti-influenza prophylaxis instead of influenza vaccination. Patients treatedwith it were free from influenzal diseases for 6 to 12 months. Furthermore they felt arevitalising effect accompanied by improvement of their general condition and fitness.Phagocytosis is improved and regeneration of the connective tissue is enhanced. Thus itintervenes in the basic functions of the organism.

In arthrosis, osteochondrosis, osteoporosis, circulation disturbances, developmentaldisorders of the skeleton, in all revitalisation measures and when treating degenerativediseases implantation of mesenchyme, as a basic treatment, for the reasons abovementioned, is essential.

In conclusion, being a practician I may say that my experience has shown thatimplantation of fetal connective tissue cells activates the autotherapeutic potentialexisting in the organism. It is an effective support for the basic regulation.