Ayurveda and Pharmacogenomics
Year: 2012
Type: article
Abstract: world is moving towards personalized medicine. In allopathic medicine, this means that prevention, diagnosis, and treatment are all tailored to the characteristics of each individual patient. The sequencing of the human genome has allowed for the detection and identification of DNA sequences and protein expression in tissues, saliva, blood and urine. The ability to undertake genome-wide association studies (GWAS) has led to the identification of many common genetic risk variants for multiple human diseases. Scientists are even beginning to perform in depth studies on healthy patients, and are employing strategies called “integrative personal omics profile (iPOP) ” [1]. This type of analysis merges genomic, proteomic, metabolomic, and antibody studies in a single individual over time. However, it is widely recognized that it is difficult to interpret much of the genome, and that many diseases such as diabetes and cancer involve multiple genes and multiple cellular pathways as well as environmental factors. That being said, western medicine is also beginning to acknowledge that a person’s phenotype is indeed related not only to disease risk, but also to treatment response. In Ayurveda, personalized medicine has been practiced for thousands of years. The central concept of health and disease revolves around the uniqueness of the individual and uses the three-fold classification system of tridosha theory. This individual constitution (or Prakriti) is based on differences in physiological and psychological characteristics and is not dependent on race or ethnicity. The classification of constitution into three contrasting phenotypic categories or doshas that include Vata, Pitta, and Kapha is fundamental to the practice of Ayurveda. The Prakriti of an individual is determined at the time of conception and does not change over the person’s lifetime. Thus, Prakriti can be equated with our own individual
Author: Diana I. Lurie
Language: English
Subfield: Complementary and alternative medicine
Field: Medicine
Domain: Health Sciences
Open Access status: diamond
OpenAlex ID: W1557032802