在幹細胞研究方面，體內和體外的差異體現出的不僅是東西方對幹細胞活動特性認識上的不同，而且更深刻地反映出其對生命本質的認識和理解的不同。受到分子生物學的鼓舞，體外研究者用機械觀來看待生命活動的認識方式已經成為20世紀以來佔統治地位的主流生命觀；而徐榮祥燒傷濕性醫療技術的成功和其原位幹細胞培養模式的誕生使人們把對於生命本質的理解從現代向歷史做了一些向後的回調。當整個世界陶醉於有望破解生命的狂喜，而將對人的認識能力的評價推向極致之時，徐榮祥卻向世界展示了另一面生命自身的潛能。這種展示，不只是一個簡單的展示而已，他給人以某種暗示性的感受，彷彿是上帝有意的安排，在最前沿、最能體現人類力量的研究領域，在人類最富於想像、最豪氣沖天的時刻，讓徐榮祥用東方古老傳統的智慧實現了用凝聚迄今人類所有智慧所無法企及的夢想。這實在有些不可思議，給人的感覺就好像是上帝在同人類開玩笑，在和人類玩類似貓捉老鼠的遊戲。徐榮祥和他的研究成果的出現究竟意味著什麼，難道是某種超人的力量在冥冥之中把玩著自己的造物，故意挑戰人類的智慧，肆意嘲弄人類的脆弱？

      1912年，出生於德國的生物學家洛佈在他移居美國的同時，出版了其劃時代的鉅作《生命的機械觀》。在書中，他描述了自己利用海膽卵所做的實驗。洛布將卵從母海膽身上取出，在沒有精子的情況下，只用小劑量無生命的化學藥品，刺激海膽有如受精一般，展開生命中最神奇的現象胚胎的發生。雖然這個實驗現在已經成為展示早期胚胎髮生過程最簡單的實驗，但是在當時，這個生物體單細胞發育為完整個體的過程的描述卻被報紙的頭條新聞宣稱為在試管中製造生命。洛布的研究和發現成為支持生命機械論觀點的有力證據。他深信，生命的機制簡單到人類將可在實驗室中創造生命。他寫到：“我們必能成功地製造人工生命，否則也必須找出辦不到的原因。”

  對於生命活動的研究，從20世紀70年代至今，細胞層面與分子層面相結合，並一致以機械論者的方式去探索生命的本質。如今，一些生命活動不僅可以脫離生命體在試管裡發生，而且細胞分子生物學家可以用無生命的原子和分子之間交互的作用來解釋生命的根本運作。現代生物學家宣稱：“所有構建生命的現象，均可用物理化學的詞彙去解釋。” 
      特別是隨著體細胞克隆生命成功和乾細胞體外培養實現無限增殖，生命的機械觀被推向極致。據報導，美國和加拿大的科研組宣布將啟動一項雄心勃勃的製造生命器官的計劃。這項預計投資30億英鎊的計劃將用乾細胞分別克隆出器官不同部位的組織，然後，再將這些組織拼裝成器官。比如，製造心臟，首先用不同組織的干細胞製造出心肌、瓣膜和血管等組織，然後，再將這些組織拼合成心臟器官。他們擬製造的器官包括心臟、腎臟和胰臟等。

      歷史上，儘管西方的一些科學家也認識到生命具有“自我組合”的能力，但是“自我組合”對他們來說，並不是用來支持生命的有機論的，而是用來描述他們用機械觀所無法解釋的生命能動現像一個特定概念的。當觸及生命能動時，他們的解釋實際上是說這個現像不用解釋，就如同雪花，它的形成絕不是奇蹟使然，結晶的形成源於某些特定分子的本質，使它無需假借外力，即可自我組織成一定結構。特定分子會組成特定結構，是因為它們的形狀及物理和化學特性只允許它們形成那些形式。換句話說，結晶的形成無需外力來指導，因為真正的指針就藏在分子本身。諾貝爾獎得主法國生物學家莫諾在其著作《機會與需要》一書中寫到：“預先形成的完整結構並不存在，但結構的藍圖卻早已存在於每個組成單元內，因此，無需外界的幫助或註入額外的信息，即可自動自發地形成。必要的訊息隱而不顯地藏在組成分子中，因此，一個結構的漸次形成，並不是無中生有的創造，而是這份訊息的展現。”

      人類有關生命本質的認識由整體到部分，由宏觀到微觀，漸次展開。對於生命的認識，人類確實發生了由現像到本質的飛躍，生命的本質在個體系統器官組織細胞等不同層面上被依次揭示，不過，當人們的認識被引向微觀更深層次的時候，人們幾乎每天都被發現關於“生命機械”的新細節所鼓舞，而全力執著於微觀，卻無暇顧及宏觀，更無力在微觀與宏觀之間去發現和建立某種必然的聯繫。彷彿生命活動的全部含義都在微觀世界，都在分子的內部；即便考慮到分子與外界的聯繫，也是從微環境著眼。

      從微觀著眼看機體，機體呈現為一個巨系統，機體的生命活動也表現為不同層次的錯綜複雜而難以把握，即便是生命的最基本單位細胞，窮其生命活動的規律也將是一個巨工程。單從細胞這個層面上來考察生命，不僅要搞清楚細胞內在的構成，還要搞清楚影響細胞的外在構成，如果如科學家們所指出的那樣，結構的藍圖就在組成分子當中，那麼，問題就確實好辦得多，但是如果這結構的藍圖不僅僅存在於組成分子中，還存在於分子之外，或者更存在於無數分子與分子的相互影響之中，那麼，要確定生命的活動規律，就不是一個簡單的，可以通過認識機體的局部特徵而實現的目標。

      按照生命機械論的觀點，生命如同一台電腦，再簡單不過，不論電路是多麼複雜，集成電路都可以作為一個獨立的局部參與電腦的組成，它可以拆下來，換上另外一個照常工作。但是生命的構成其真實情況可能是這樣嗎？還以2000年前古希臘亞里斯多德闡述整體與局部關係時所用的最古老的比喻為例，手和胳膊相聯，與機體為一個統一的生命整體時，能發揮手的功能，此時的手為手，而從臂膀上割下來的手與機體沒有統一性，則徒有手的形狀卻不能發揮手的功能，此時的手已不再是手。這裡表達的便是生命最原始最樸素的有機觀。

      早在20世紀30年代，生理學家霍登就指出，純機械式的詮釋無法說明生命協調統合的現象。而里特爾則更明確創造了“有機生物論”一詞，以表達生命有機觀。他是這樣描述生命的：一個整體與其組件之間的關係，不僅包括整體的存在需要依賴各組件間的次序的協調和相互依存，還會有整體對其組件的絕對控制。對於生命整體的系統意義，諾維克夫則詳細說明了為什麼生物體的解釋必須是整體的：“某一層次的整體，只是更高層次的組件。組件和整體都是物質實體，而各組件的互動所造成的統合現象，則是各組件的特性整合的結果。由於整體論排斥化約思想，因此，它反對將生物比喻為一個由各式獨立零件（物理化學單元）所組成的機器，可以像從任一台引擎移出其中的活塞，還能描述其功能與性質，而不管它們是從什麼系統中取出的。”相對地，由於生物系統中的每一組件間都存在有交互作用，因此，光描述一個分離組件，是無法傳達整個系統的性質的。真正控制整個系統的，是組件間的組織。

      生命世界從細胞，到組織、器官、器官系統和完整的生物體，每一階層都存在組件的整合現象，這種整合可在生化層面、發生層面和個體行為層面中清楚看到。所有生命有機論者都一致同意，沒有任何系統可以以分離組件的特性來解釋清楚。有機生物論的基礎是建立在生物體具有組織的這一事實上，生物體並不只是由一堆性狀和分子堆砌而成，生物體的功能是由性狀和分子間的組織、互相關係、交互作用和互相依存其特性所完成的。
      生命微觀研究方面的深入進展把人們的認識引向深入的同時，也使人們離開整體越走越遠，彷彿很難再回到從整體或系統來看待生命的生命觀上來了。正是在這樣的背景下，徐榮祥原位幹細胞研究把人們的生命觀從當前向歷史做了一個向後的調整，從而使人們的認識重新回到生命的系統有機觀點上來。

      他在幹細胞與機體生理環境之間所建立的關係揭示出的有關生命的含義不僅是有機的，而且是能動的。也就是說，一方面，生命是一個統一的整體系統，每一個局部都受制於整個機體，服從整個機體的需要，與機體保持高度的統一性，它不能脫離機體而獨立存在，失去與機體聯繫的局部便失去了在其特定機體中的特定功能，從而失去了生命的意義。另一方面，生命是一個能動的系統，它的每一個局部單位在機體組織的統一環境中都能夠按照機體的統一指令自己評價自己的地位，自動完成自己特定的任務，每一個局部單位雖然功能表達各不相同，但其功能卻是為了支持整個機體完成生命活動的。

      生命有機的觀點是最樸素和最原始的，然而，正是因為它最原始和最樸素，它對於生命活動建立的概念才是粗線條最具原則性的。不論人類對於生命的認識深刻到什麼樣的微觀層次，即便是在分子水平上，作為最基本單位的細胞，它的受精與分化、生長與增殖、信息傳遞，也都不應該悖離生命的基本特徵。這正是建立在現實治療醫學成就基礎之上，徐榮祥幹細胞研究揭示出細胞活動的本質性的生命規律。
 

    在對原位組織細胞激活為幹細胞和對原幹細胞定向分化的前提下，讓我們再次重溫一下原位幹細胞培養所揭示的幹細胞生命活動的主要過程：當皮膚組織受到損傷，徐榮祥不是從微觀的分子層面入手，而是從宏觀的生理環境入手，最大限度地為創面人工構建生理環境；在生命的正常活動基本得以維持和運轉的條件下，機體通過信息的交換，本能地發出修復損傷組織的指令；在為機體中的細胞提供按照仿生學原理設計的必要的營養的支持下，機體組織中的細胞按照指令自動地啟動程序，並轉化為原始的胚胎幹細胞；胚胎幹細胞繼續按照機體從受精卵時獲得的分化程序開始其組織再生的工作，不過，執行這項任務時，它並非被動地照原樣生成組織，而是在對照損傷組織，對損傷程度做出判定後，並根據需要準確地決定修復的量，從而使修復的結果既不 量增生使皮膚凸起，也不缺量欠生使皮膚凹陷。這便是徐榮祥為我們所揭示的干細胞生命活動的有機能動的最真實的特徵。
      面對被修復了的完美的肌膚，我們不禁要問：在這個世界上，還有什麼樣的干細胞能夠完成原位幹細胞巧奪天工的傑作，還有什麼樣的能力能夠超越生命自身蘊藏著的潛能。

      終了，我們又回到了一個被哲學家們思考了數千年的老掉牙的問題上來，即人與自然的關係。在客觀世界面前，人類的能動性究竟有多大，人類真的能夠在最徹底的意義上改變生命的自然過程，而最終超越自然嗎？如果通過順應自然便可以毫不費力地利用自然為人類服務，那麼窮其所能追求最終對自然的超越又有什麼樣的意義？回到現實中來，我們考慮的問題會更加實際，如果在很低的治療費用的情況下，生命組織就可以通過為病變機體再造生理環境和為乾細胞提供必要的啟動條件，從而實現機體組織的再生修復的話，那麼，高投入的體外幹細胞的組織培養和器官移植的組織工程的研究其實際意義又將會有多大？

In stem cell research, the difference between in vitro and in vivo mode reflected not only the different understanding between western and eastern researchers on stem cell activities, but also the difference on the in depth recognition on the nature of life.  Inspired by molecular biology, in vitro researchers observed life activities with a mechanistic point of view, which had dominated the understanding of life since 20th century; the success of Rongxiang Xu’s MEBT techniques and the emergence of in situ stem cell culture slightly retrogressed people’s understanding on life nature from today back to the history.  When the whole world is mesmerizing in the hope of revealing the mystery of life, and extremely appraising people’s recognition ability, Rongxiang Xu showed the world the other side – potential of life itself.  This revelation is not merely a demonstration.  It offered an implicational feeling to the people as God given. Rongxiang Xu, at the frontline, in the research field in which human power was expressed to the extreme, at the most imaginative and proudest moment, with his ancient eastern intelligence fulfilled the unreachable dream which could not be fulfilled even with all human intelligence combined.  It is incredible, like God was joking and playing the cat and mouse with human being.  What is the meaning behind Rongxiang Xu and his research results?  Is there a supernatural power manipulating its creation, challenging human’s intelligence, and sneering at the human vulnerability?

In 1912, Germany born biologist Loeb published his epoch-making book, ‘The Mechanistic Conception of Life’ when migrating to America.  In the book he described his own experiment on the eggs of sea urchin.  Loeb took the eggs out of female sea urchin and without sperm, used chemicals to stimulate female urchin to mimic fertilization, and therefore produced the most surprising phenomenon – the generation of an ‘embryo’.  Although today this experiment becomes a simple demonstration to show the early development of embryo, back to that time, this process of monocellular development into organism was described on newspaper headline as production of life in the test tube.  Loeb’s study and discovery became the clear evidence to support the mechanistic conception of life.  He truly believed that the mechanisms of life were as easy as that life could be produced in laboratory.  He wrote: “We will successfully produce artificial life; even not, we will find the reason.”

Since 1970s, the research in life activities had been carried out on the cell and molecule combination level to explore the nature of life with mechanistic approach.  Today, some life activities can be performed without organism, and the fundamental process of life could be explained by the interaction between nonliving atoms and molecules.  Contemporary biologists claimed: “All life building phenomena can be explained by physics and chemistry vocabularies.”

By the success of life cloning from somatic cells and indefinite proliferation through in vitro stem cell culture, mechanistic understanding of life was pushed to the extreme.  It was reported that the study groups in American and Canada had announced to initiate an ambitious plan with 3 billion British pounds of budget to produce human organs.  They would clone the various tissues of the organ first, and then assemble the tissues to form the organ.  For example, to produce a heart, firstly they would use stem cells from different tissues to produce cardiac muscle, heart valve, and blood vessel tissues, and then put these tissues together to form a heart.  The target organs included heart, kidney, and liver, etc.

In history, although some western scientists realized the ‘self constitution’ ability of life, it was used, instead of supporting organicism, only for describing life dynamics which could not be explained by their mechanisticism.  When facing life dynamics, their explanation was that it was unnecessary to explain it, like the formation of snow flake, which was not by miracle.  The snow flake crystallization was originated by some specific features of molecules.  It was self constitution without influence of external factors.  Specific molecules could form specific structures because their physical and chemical properties only allow them to form those structures.  In other words, the crystallization was caused by the internal factors inside the molecules without the influence of external factors.  The French Nobel Prize winning biologist Monod wrote in his book ‘Chance and Necessity’: “Pre-constituted complete structures do not exist, but their blueprints are stored in each constitution unit, thus, without external help or inserted extra information, they can be formed automatically and spontaneously.  The essential information is partially concealed in the forming molecules, and a structure is formed gradually instead of suddenly from nothing.  It is the demonstration of the message.”

From global to local, from macrocosmic to microcosmic, the understanding on life nature was gradually expanded.  It was fundamentally improved from the superficial level into the intrinsic level.  The life nature was successively revealed on organism – system – organ – tissue – cell level.  The understanding was guided further into microcosmic level on which people was inspired by the discovery of ‘life mechanistic’ details without noticing the macrocosmic level, let alone the inevitable correlation between microcosmic and macrocosmic level.  It seemed that all of the significance of life activities lay on the microcosmic level and in the cells; even the occasional consideration about the association between molecules and external environment was focused on microenvironment.

Microcosmically, organism is a macro-system.  Its life activities are complicatedly and uncontrollably presented on different levels.  It would be difficult even to thoroughly understand the activities of cell, the most fundamental unit of organism.  To investigate life on cellular level, both internal and external constitution must be clarified.  As pointed out by the scientists, the blueprint was in the forming molecules.  However, what if was the blueprint not only in the molecules, but also outside the molecules, or even in the interaction between molecules?  In this case, identification of life activities would not be simple and accomplished by the understanding only on the local features of organism.

According to life mechanisticism, life is as simple as a computer.  No matter how complicated are the circuits, integrated circuit could participate in the computer formation as an independent unit which can be changed with a new one and still work as usual.  Is this the case in the constitution of real life?  2000 years ago, Aristotle from ancient Greece used an oldest metaphor to describe the local and global relationship: hand was connected with arm.  When form as a united organism, hand functioned as hand.  When separated from arm and lost the unison with the organism, hand lost its function and was not hand any more, even it still kept the appearance.  This was the most original and plain organic theory.

As early as in 1930s, physiologist Holden criticized that the pure mechanistic explanation could not clarify the phenomenon of life unison.  Ritter invented the word ‘organicism’ to demonstrate the organic theory of life.  He described life as: the correlation between the entirety and the components, including the sequential regulation between components and their interdependence essential for the existence of the entirety, as well as the absolute control of the components by the entirety.  Novikoff showed in detail that why the explanation of organism must be integrative: “The whole on a certain level is the component of a higher level.  Both the parts and the wholes are substantial entities, and the integration caused by the interaction between components is resulted from the integrative feature of the components.  Because the vitalism excludes the reductionism, it opposed to describe the organism as a machine consisted of independent parts (physical and chemical units), which could be removed like taking a piston from the engine, and all parts could be described by their functions and natures without mentioning their origins.”  In contrast, due to the interaction between the components in biological system, the merely description of each component was unable to demonstrate the integrative nature of the system.  It was the tissue between the components actually controlled the entire system.

From cell to tissue, organ, organ system, and the entire organism, there is component integration on each level, which can be seen on biochemical level, genetic level, and individual level.  All organicists agree that no system can be clearly explained by the natures of each component.  Organicism is based on the fact that organism contains tissues.  Organism is not formed as a pile of stones by properties and molecules.  The function of organisms is determined by properties, intermolecular tissues, intermolecular correlation, molecular interaction, and molecular interdependence.

The advanced development in microcosmic study in life led people to thorough understanding and away from entirety at the same time.  It seemed difficult for people to globally or systematically view life.  Under this background, Rongxiang Xu’s in situ stem cell research led people back towards the history and the recognition of life with systemic organic point of view.

The correlation between stem cells and organic physiological environment established by Rongxiang Xu revealed that the significance of life was not only organic, but also dynamic.  In other words, on one hand, life is a united and integrative system in which each part is controlled by the organism to meet its global needs and can not independently exist.  Without the connection with the organism, each part would lose its specific function in specific organism and therefore, lose its meaning.  On the other hand, life is a dynamic system in which each part positions itself and performs its own tasks in the united environment and under the commend from the organism in order to support the whole organism.

Because its simplicity and primitiveness, the organic view establishes a straightforward and principled concept about life activities.  No matter how thorough and deep the microcosmic understanding about life is, even on the molecular level to study the basic unit of cell and its fertilization, differentiation, growth and proliferation, and signal transmission, it should not contradict with the fundamental characteristics of life, which are the organic nature of cell activities revealed, on the basis of realistic clinical achievements, by Rongxiang Xu’s stem cell research.

Based on the activation of somatic cells to become stem cells, and on the directed differentiation of in situ stem cells, let’s review the stem cell activities: when skin was injured, it was managed by Rongxiang Xu in whole body macrocosmic physiological environment, instead on microcosmic molecular level, which maximally and artificially built the physiological environment for the wound; under the condition by which the basic life activities were functionally maintained, the organism automatically sent signals through information exchange in order to repair the injured tissues; provided with bionic designed essential regenerative nutrients, somatic cells in the organism automatically initiated the procedures directed by the commend and transformed into primitive embryonic stem cells; the embryonic stem cells then started tissue regeneration by the organic differentiation procedures acquired during the zygote period.  However, during the process of tissue regeneration, embryonic stem cells did not passively produce the tissues as the origin.  They accurately determined the amount of repairing tissues by the severity of the injury, and therefore to produce optimal healing without excessive proliferation which might cause skin protrusion, or inadequate repair which might lead to sunken skin.  This is the true dynamic feature of stem cell life activities disclosed by Rongxiang Xu.

Facing the perfectly repaired muscle and skin, we have to wonder: in this world, what kind of stem cells can accomplish this marvelous masterpiece as in situ stem cells, and what kind of ability can exceed the great potential hidden in life itself.

Finally, we come back again to the old issue pursued by philosophers for thousands of years, which is the relationship between human and nature. In front of the objective world, how powerful is human dynamics?  Can human being change the natural progress of life on the most fundamental level and therefore to beat the nature?  If we can serve people by conforming to the nature, then what is the point to exhaustedly struggle with and finally to go beyond the nature?  Back to the reality, what we consider will be more practical.  If life tissues can restore the physiological environment for diseased organisms and provide the prerequisite activation conditions for stem cells with low costs, and therefore to achieve the regeneration and repair of organic tissues, then what is the practical value of the tissue engineering involving in vitro tissue culturing and organ transplantation by stem cell?