Back From the Dead? Researchers "Stunned" as Cells & Tissues Revive
Channel: Lifespan News
Date: 2022-08-21

A new study, in which cellular activity has been restored in pigs an hour after death, is raising new questions about when “dead” actually means “dead.” It may also eventually extend medical science’s ability to keep humans alive, revolutionize organ transplants, and even have implications for cryopreservation and biostasis.

Advances in resuscitation have already moved the boundaries of life and death, making it possible to revive a person several minutes after the heart stops beating. However, bringing someone back an hour or more after a fatal ischemic injury, such as a stroke or heart attack, has been far beyond our capabilities. Now a new Nature study from Yale scientists shows that that may change.

The scientists created a technology called OrganEx, which has a lot in common with a heart-lung machine, but it reperfuses the body with a special solution.

Back in 2019, the same group of scientists made headlines around the world after they reported restoring some cellular functions in a pig brain four hours after death using a similar method known as BrainEx. This time, the researchers attempted the experiment with a complete body.
To reduce the possibility of animal suffering the pigs were anesthetized, and then their hearts were stopped. After an hour of being effectively dead at room temperature, the pigs’ bodies were connected to OrganEx machines and reperfused with OrganEx solution.

The researchers used two other groups as controls: pigs that were put on a regular ECMO machine, and pigs that had their blood flow restored almost immediately after it was interrupted, known as the zero-hour group.

Using the ECMO system one hour after death resulted in very low blood flow while OrganEx machines were able to restore normal flow that resulted in adequate oxygenation of the whole body. Rigor mortis, which was clearly observed in the ECMO group, was also absent with OrganEx.

Histological analysis demonstrated a substantial preservation of cells and tissues, and electrocardiography showed the re-emergence of heartbeat patterns. There was even some movement of the pigs heads, necks, and torsos reported.

While these results are extremely impressive they do not mean that the pigs were brought back from the dead. While researchers were "stunned" as the cells & tissues revived, the revival wasn't complete. Just like in the 2019 brain experiment, the researchers did not observe any of the brain activity that would indicate consciousness. However, the researchers also intentionally took steps that would make that outcome less likely. The OrganEx solution was 28 degrees Celsius, well below pig body temperature, and it included anesthetic compounds and neural blockers to prevent brain activity during the experiment. What would have happened if the researchers specifically attempted to reboot brain activity and restore consciousness is currently unknown.

This technology could revolutionize organ transplantation by helping to preserve organs, increasing the amount of time that doctors have to work with.

Our concept of when death occurs may be forever changed - even more so if these technologies advance to the point that function can be restored after cryopreservation, though there’s still much work to be done on that front.

Even setting aside concerns of zombie pigs, there are real questions of what might be brought back and what that experience might be like. Regardless, this is an important area of study and there is more to come.

SOURCES AND FURTHER READING
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Cellular recovery after prolonged warm ischaemia of the whole body - https://www.nature.com/articles/s41586-022-05016-1

Restoration of brain circulation and cellular functions hours post-mortem - https://www.nature.com/articles/s41586-019-1099-1

Pig organs partially revived in dead animals — researchers are stunned - https://www.nature.com/articles/d41586-022-02112-0

Scientists Are Giving Dead Brains New Life. What Could Go Wrong? - https://www.nytimes.com/2019/07/02/magazine/dead-pig-brains-reanimation.html

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