A bloodlike cocktail pumped through pigs’ vascular systems one hour after their deaths effectively supplied oxygen to tissues and partially restored cellular activity in multiple organs, including the heart, brain, and liver, a study published today (August 3) in Nature finds. The work follows a 2019 experiment in which the same group restored cellular function in the brains of pigs four hours after their deaths.
“Similar to the previous study in this work, we actually show that we can restore certain cell functions sometime after death,” study author Zvonimir Vrselja, a neuroscientist at Yale University, said a press conference, according to Gizmodo.
Vrselja and his colleagues’ research has implications for preserving organs for transplantation for longer periods compared to the current practice of using extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (ECMO) machines to keep the organs of deceased people alive until they can be donated, reports Nature. “We’re not saying it’s clinically relevant, ...
