A new study applying computational linguistics to 10th-century medieval commentaries on the Charaka Samhita has uncovered a sophisticated symbolic system for describing metabolic processes. Researchers found that the Sanskrit terminology used to explain "Agni-Dhatu" (metabolic fire) interactions matches modern mathematical models for non-linear enzyme kinetics.
The study demonstrates that medieval Indian physicians utilized a form of recursive logic to calculate the rate of biochemical reactions based on substrate concentrations. By translating these ancient Sanskrit protocols into modern differential equations, the researchers have shown that the Ayurvedic understanding of digestion was based on a rigorous, quantitative framework for modeling biological catalysts.