A scientific paper in the journal Nature is getting a lot of attention. The manuscript, published in the professionally acclaimed journal, on August 3, describes how a solution, which the scientists named OrganEx, via a technology similar to a heart-lung machine, was able to revive the cells of pigs that had been dead in the laboratory for an hour.
The pigs’ brain waves were flat and their hearts were no longer pumping blood. A team of scientists from Yale pumped the OrganEx solution into their bodies. The hearts of the unconscious pigs started pumping blood and the blood circulated through their bodies, replenishing their organs and brains.
A control group of animals was treated with blood infusions without the ‘magical’ solution. Their cells did not experience being ‘reborn’ like the first group’s did.
Dr. Nenad Sistan, professor at the Yale School of Medicine, is the head of the research team. He was shocked by OrganEx’s ability to revive the pig cells.
“We did not know what to expect,” said Dr. David Andrijevic, a neuroscientist at Yale who collaborated with the research team and is a contributing author. “Everything we restored was incredible to us.”
The research is focused on keeping transplant organs viable for a longer period of time after death. It could also be used to prevent organ damage to victims of heart attack or stroke. Other medical applications could stem from the research.
The OrganEx testing is still in the developmental stage, using animal subjects, and is a long way from application to human medicine.
The article, entitled, “Cellular recovery after prolonged warm ischaemia of the whole body,” was published in Nature on August 3, 2022, and has a long list of authors and scientists that worked with the team and deserve recognition for their incredible achievement: David Andrijevic, Zvonimir Vrselja, Taras Lysyy, Shupei Zhang, Mario Skarica, Ana Spajic, David Dellal, Stephanie L. Thorn, Robert B. Duckrow, Shaojie Ma, Phan Q. Duy, Atagun U. Isiktas, Dan Liang, Mingfeng Li, Suel-Kee Kim, Stefano G. Daniele, Khadija Banu, Sudhir Perincheri, Madhav C. Menon, Anita Huttner, Kevin N. Sheth, Kevin T. Gobeske, Gregory T. Tietjen, Hitten P. Zaveri, Stephen R. Latham, Albert J. Sinusas and Nenad Sestan.
