New research out this month reports that sound not only interfaces with the ears but, under certain conditions, can interact directly with cells in the body. A research facility in Kyoto, Japan, published evidence this month that “sound can suppress the formation of fat cells and influence gene activity.” The example given illustrates how, at a loud concert, you can sometimes feel the sound in your entire body. The review journal “Science Daily” described it this way: “In addition to providing compelling evidence of the perception of sound at the cell level, this study also challenges the traditional concept of sound perception by living beings, which is that it is mediated by receptive organs like the brain. It turns out that your cells respond to sounds, too.”
The sound can also modulate cell adhesion molecules that bind or facilitate communication between cells, such as leukocytes and endothelial cells. It is unclear whether sound therapy will ever be practical in the future of veterinary treatment. However, after reading about this, I imagined a veterinarian on a couch listening to music, devouring food, and counting on the sound waves to prevent obesity. 🙂
Everyone is invited to use a generative AI tool to play with that image!
Rolan
Schematic of the device used in the sound research
