Investigation of the biological effect of emitted qi with fluorescence probes

In this paper, the effects of the emitted qi of qigong on the fluidity of rat liver mitochondrial membrane are investigated with the fluorescence probes ANS, As and NPN. ANS is considered to be located near the membrane interface region and is a fluorescence probe often used in studies of the glycerol region of the lipid bilayer. As is bound to the medium layer, NPN is lipid soluble and penetrates deeply into the membrane hydrocarbon region. Two kinds of qigong which are called weak qigong and strong qigong respectively were done by the qigong master in the experiment. Weak qigong is nourishing and belongs to the general qigong state. Strong qigong is penetrating and belongs to a more advanced qigong state. In this experiment the changes of fluorescence of the mitochondrial membrane were investigated while the mitochondrial membrane received the emitted qi of the two different kinds of qigong.

Results and Discussion
1. Effect of emitted qi on the fluorescence of ANS-labeled membrane.
The experimental results showed that when the membrane was worked on by the weak qigong the fluorescence slightly increased and then decreased, and when worked on by the strong qigong the fluorescence decreased more markedly than in the former case. But the changes of fluorescence were not accompanied by a shift of the fluorescent emission maximum. The decrease in fluorescence probably means that under the effect of the emitted qi the structure of membrane at the interface region of the lipid bilayer will loose, becoming disordered, and the fluidity of the membrane will increase. The effect of weak qigong causes the fluorescence to increase slightly and then decrease which is consistent with the procedure of the emission of qi in the weak qigong, in which there is first contraction and then release. And the two procedures have the same relaxation time.

2. Effect of the emitted qi on the fluorescence of AS-labeled membrane.
The results indicate that the weak qigong has no effect on the fluorescence of AS-labeled membrane while the strong qigong induces a decrease of the fluorescence. It is possible that because the weak qigong emits less energy and has weaker penetrability, it is not strong enough to influence the structure and ordering of the medium layer and induce any change of the fluorescence. while the strong qigong emits more energy and has stronger penetrability, it alters the ordering of the medium layer, decreases the fluorescence and increase the fluidity.

3. Effect of the emitted qi on the fluorescence of NPN-labeled membrane.
The experimental results indicate that when the duration of the fluorescence is induced by both weak and strong qigong, but if the qigong master emits strong qi for 8 minutes, the decrease of fluorescence, i. e. the alteration of the ordering and the increase of the fluidity of the deep layer, can be observed.

Conclusion
The results indicate that the emitted qi can alter the fluidity of biomembrane. The strong qigong is more effective than weak qigong and a long duration produces a more marked effect than a shorter duration. The emitted qi not only alters the ordering of the surface layer but also penetrates into the medium and deep layers. It probably is one of the mechanisms of qigong in curing diseases.