We have been told repeatedly to "follow the science," usually in connection to COVID-19
immunization. That is good advice and my wife and I ae fully vaccinated for COVID-19 and other
viruses.
To be fully consistent, there is another situation where I would hope that everyone would consider
following the science.
The human female produces ova (eggs) which her body recognizes as "me." Except in rare cases of
autoimmune disease, the woman's body leaves the ovaries alone. In autoimmune oophoritis, the body's
immune system attacks the ovaries causing inflammation, sever damage, and fibrosis.
Normally, when a sperm wins the frantic race to the egg, the egg immediately allows the
spermatozoan to enter and mix its DNA with the DNA of the egg. The mixture of DNA is 50% "me"
and 50% "not me."
If the body is functioning properly it does not like "not me" and makes moves to get rid of :not me."
It attacks "not me" to protect itself from viruses, bacteria, and other organisms like yeast or protozoa.
This is the reason transplant patients have to take anti-rejection drugs. The transplanted tissues are "not
me."
To protect itself, the fertilized egg starts making masking proteins to tell the body "there's nothing
to see here." They hide the "not me." The body only sees the "me."
Once the embryo implants and begins to increase in size, it becomes too "not me" to ignore. That's
where the placenta takes over. It has many functions but one function is to release hormones and other
factors to prevent rejection of the fetus. Remember that the fetus is "not me." So what you have is
mother ("me") and fetus ("not me.")
This is the reason why there is so much controversy over when the fetus becomes a separate,
individual human.
Posts
