Tagcryogenics

The Curious Case of Human Hibernation

A couple years ago Inhuman Experiment did a run down of cases of humans hibernation, from Russian peasants to trapped skiers:

During the same TED Talk, he mentions experiments showing that if you reduce the oxygen content in the air slightly, roundworms die, and if you reduce it a lot – down to 10 ppm – they stop moving and appear dead but are in fact alive in a state of suspended animation. Unlike their animated and lively friends, these suspended roundworms can be put into cold temperatures without harm.

Exposing an organism to hydrogen sulfide is another way to achieve the same effect as reducing the oxygen content of a container or a room. By binding at the same cell site as oxygen, hydrogen sulfide reduces the need for oxygen, depressing metabolism. Roth theorizes that perhaps hydrogen sulfide production was increased in Bågenholm’s own body when she fell under the ice, thus preventing her from dying from the cold.

The first practical application of this technique is surgery, which requires mild hypothermia to prevent harming patients. Even with a small amount of injectable hydrogen sulfide, which Roth’s company has developed, the results are apparently better than with a traditional approach. Safety studies are already done, and human trials are underway.

While this is undoubtedly a great medical breakthrough, I can’t help but think of other possible applications. What Roth has done is deanimate a mouse by reducing its metabolism and then bring it back to life unharmed. If the human trials are succesful, could this mean hydrogen sulfide might be used even outside surgery? Are we talking about a potential lightweight version of cryonics?

Full Story: Inhuman Experiment: The Curious Case of Human Hibernation

(Thanks OVO)

See also:

Pentagon: Zombie Pigs First, Then Hibernating Soldiers

Darpa: Freeze Soldiers to Save Injured Brains

Doctors claim suspended animation success

Suspended-animation cold sleep achieved in lab

suspended animation

Dr. Mark Roth’s team at the Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center has figured out how to freeze and re-animate worms and yeasts. The trick is that they must be oxygen deprived before freezing. Knowing that there’s been a few well known cases of humans being frozen and revived, they’re hoping they can extend this technique to humans.

The idea here is not so much to place people into deep freeze in order to endure lengthy interstellar voyages, a staple idea in science fiction but unlikely in the near future (humanity is struggling even to assemble a Mars mission right now).

Rather, Roth and his colleagues think that their work might lead to techniques that would let paramedics or doctors “buy time” for severely injured or ill patients by putting them into suspended states like those achieved by Nordby and Uchikoshi. Then, once the underlying problem had been fixed, they could be reanimated.

The Register: Suspended-animation cold sleep achieved in lab

See also: Roth’s TED talk on suspended animation

Consumer protection for decapitated heads

Reason:

Earlier this month, Arizona state legislator Bob Stump (R-Peoria) coolly introduced a bill aimed at regulating the activities of the nation’s largest cryonics facility, the Alcor Life Extension Foundation, under the authority of the Arizona Board of Funeral Directors and Embalmers.

Full Story:Reason: Regulating the Biggest Chill

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