https://www.geneticacupuncture.com/Kwang-Sup%20Soh-PIIS2005290109600418.pdf

Bonghan Circulatory System as an Extension of Acupuncture Meridians

Visualizing the network of Bonghan ducts in the omentum and peritoneum by using Trypan blue.

Novel Anatomic Structures in the Brain and Spinal Cord of Rabbit That May Belong to the Bonghan System of Potential Acupuncture Meridians

Comparison of the Characteristic Features of Bonghan Ducts, Blood and Lymphatic Capillaries

Novel threadlike structures, so-called Bonghan ducts (BHDs), were recently rediscovered inside large caliber lymphatic vessels using two different staining dyes in rabbits (Janus green B and Alcian blue) and fluorescent nanoparticles in rats. These three methods have the drawback of injecting chemical agents into the lymphatic vessels, which might damage the BHD and hinder further investigation of its physiological function. New methods to observe BHDs without using external chemical agents need to be developed. In the present work, we introduce a contrast enhancing optical method for in vivo observation of BHDs floating inside large caliber lymph vessels. The method uses a low-pass filter above about 650 nm, with an arrangement to minimize the light reflected from the surface of the lymph vessel. We captured films showing movement of a BHD as the animal respired. Applying the previous Alcian blue injection technique, we obtained BHD samples from the lymph vessel and observed the distribution of rod-shape nuclei (the essential feature of a BHD). BHDs can now be observed inside lymph vessels by using contrast-enhancing instrumentation without visualizing chemical agents.

/pdf/contrast-enhancing-optical-method-to-observe-a-bonghan-duct-3b5vgmcnfa.pdf

Contrast-enhancing optical method to observe a bonghan duct floating inside a lymph vessel of a rabbit

Background: In the early 1960s, Korean anatomist Bong Han Kim proposed the existence of a circulatory system that could be the anatomical basis of classical acupuncture points and Meridian...

Catecholamine-Producing Novel Endocrine Organ: Bonghan System

목적 : 봉한소체가 성체줄기세포의 원천이며, 봉한관이 줄기세포 수송로일 가능성을 확인함. 방법 : 쥐의 내부 장기표면에서 봉한소체와 봉한관을 채취했다. 다양한 줄기세포 표지항체를 써서 면역조직학적 분석을 했다. 결과 : mesenchymal 줄기세포에 관한 Integrin ${\beta}1$ , Collagen type 1, Fibronectin의 강한 발현을 확인했다. CD54는 발현되지 않았다. 조혈줄기세포에 관련하여 Thy 1의 발현이 있었다. 결론 : 골수조직과 유사하게 mesenchymal과 조혈줄기세포의 표지가 BHC에서 확인되었고, 봉한관에서는 vWF가 발현되어 줄기세포 수송로 가능성을 확인했다. 【Objectives : Showing that Bong-Han corpuscles(BHC) are suppliers of the stem cells in adulthood, and the Bong-Han ducts(BHD) are transportation routes of stem cells. Methods : BHC and BHD were obtained from the internal organ-surfaces of rats. The sliced BHC and BHD were immunostained with various stem cell markers. Extracellular matrices were also analyzed by immunohistochemistry. Result : The presence of mesenchymal stem cells was confirmed by the expression of Integrin beta 1, Collagen type 1 and Fibronectin. But CD54 was not expressed. The hematopoietic stem cell marker, Thy 1 was strongly expressed. BHDs showed Collagen type 1, Fibronectin, and vWF expression. Conclusion : Both hematopoietic and mesenchymal stem cell markers were expressed strongly in BHC similarly as in bone marrow. An endothelial cell marker(vWF) demonstrated the possibility of the stem cell transportation routes of BHD.】

Hee-Jong Woo

Papers

Catecholamine-Producing Novel Endocrine Organ: Bonghan System

Bong-Han Corpuscles as Possible Stem Cell Niches on the Organ-Surfaces