Pig Organs Brought Back To Life An Hour After Death, Scientists Claim
Scientists recently bought pig organs back to life, literally! Yep, in a new study, researchers partially revived organs of a pig an hour after its death, bringing into question what science perceives as death.
The technology used on the pig was described in a paper in Nature, but hasn't been tested on humans yet. Eventually, it could help improve the supply of donated organs for human transplantation.
A team of researchers from Yale University did something crazy in 2019. They used synthetic blood and other compounds to restore some cellular and circulatory activity in a pig's brain four hours after it had died. Let's be clear, they weren't planning on restoring electrical activity that is associated with awareness and consciousness.
Now, the same team has gone a step ahead. They connected the pigs' entire body to a system called OrganEx. It's a lot like current machines used to support a person's heart and lungs.
How does OrganEx work?
The unique aspect is OrganEx is the fluid used by the team that is pumped through a pig's circulatory mechanisms. In essence, the fluid aims to promote growth of cells and to decrease the rate of cell death while reducing inflammation.
Also read:?Scientists Successfully Transplant Genetically Modified Pig Hearts Into Dead Humans
When the pigs were hooked onto OrganEx, scientists noted signs of their cells repairing themselves and carrying out other standard functions.
But what does death mean? While the scientists may have manipulated the body into working, it still couldn't lend the body awareness, so was the pig even alive? May be partially, yes! The study is still in its infancy stage and may be able to achieve a lot more over time.
Also read:?Domesticated Animals Like Pigs And Horses Can Sense If Humans Are Being Impolite
What do you think about bringing pigs back to life? Let us know in the comments below.?For?more in the world of?technology?and?science, keep reading?Indiatimes.com.
References
Cara, E. (2022, August 3). Scientists Partially Revive Pig Organs an Hour After Death. Gizmodo.?
