Suspended animation explained

Suspended animation is the slowing of life processes by external means without

termination. Breathing, heartbeat, and other involuntary functions may still occur, but they
can only be detected by artificial means. Extreme cold can be used to precipitate the
slowing of an individual's functions; use of this process has led to the
developing science of cryonics. Cryonics is another method of life preservation but
it cryopreserves organisms using liquid nitrogen that will preserve the organism until
reanimation. Laina Beasley was kept in suspended animation as a two-celled embryo for 13
years.[1] [2]
Placing astronauts in suspended animation has been proposed as one way for an individual
to reach the end of an interstellar or intergalactic journey, avoiding the necessity for a
gigantic generation ship; occasionally the two concepts have been combined, with
generations of "caretakers" supervising a large population of frozen passengers.
Since the 1970s, induced hypothermia has been performed for some open-heart surgeries
as an alternative to heart-lung machines. Hypothermia, however, provides only a limited
amount of time in which to operate and there is a risk of tissue and brain damage for
prolonged periods.

Experiments
Temperature-induced
In June 2005 scientists at the University of Pittsburgh's Safar Center for Resuscitation
Research announced they had managed to place dogs in suspended animation and bring
them back to life, most of them without brain damage, by draining the blood out of the
dogs' bodies and injecting a low temperature solution into their circulatory systems, which
in turn keeps the bodies alive in stasis. After three hours of being clinically dead, the dogs'
blood was returned to their circulatory systems, and the animals were revived by delivering
an electric shock to their hearts. The heart started pumping the blood around the frozen
body, and the dogs were brought back to life.
While most of the dogs were fine, a few of the revived dogs had severe nervous and
movement coordination damage, causing them to be mentally disabled, and demonstrating
behavior that was deemed "zombie" like. This has been pushed further by the media which
named them "zombie dogs".[3] There is concern that using this technique on humans could
result in brain damage similar to that suffered by some of the dogs in the experiment. In
extreme cases, doctors can now use induced hypothermia which reduces brain and heart
activity to a minimum. This gives doctors more time to heal or diagnose a patient.
On 20 January 2006, doctors from the Massachusetts General Hospital in Boston announced
they had placed pigs in suspended animation with a similar technique. The pigs
were anaesthetised and major blood loss was induced. After the pigs lost about half their
blood the remaining blood was replaced with a chilled saline solution. As the body
temperature reached the damaged blood vessel was repaired and the blood was returned.
The method was tested 200 times with a 90% success rate.[4]

Chemically induced
An article in the 22 April 2005 issue of the scientific journal Science reports success towards
inducing suspended animation-like hypothermia in mice. The findings are significant, as
mice do not hibernate in nature. The laboratory of Mark B. Roth at the Fred Hutchinson
Cancer Research Center in Seattle, Washington, placed the mice in a chamber containing 80
ppm hydrogen sulfide for a duration of 6 hours. The core body temperature of the mice
dropped to 13 degrees Celsius andmetabolism, as assayed by carbon dioxide production
and oxygen use, decreased 10-fold.They also induced hypoxia on nematode embryos
and zebrafish embryos, placing them in suspended animation for hours, and then reanimating them simply by returning the oxygen to the embryos.
Massachusetts
General
Hospital in Boston announced
they
had
been
able
to
hibernate mice using the same method. Their heart rate was slowed down from 500 to 200
beats per minute, respiration fell from 120 to 25 breaths per minute and body temperature
dropped to 30C (natural: 39C). After 2 hours of breathing air without hydrogen sulfide the
mice returned to normal. Further studies are needed to see if the gas had poisonous effects
on the brain.[5]
Experiments on sedated sheep[6] and partially-ventilated anesthetized pigs[7] have been
unsuccessful, suggesting that application to large mammals may not be feasible.

Human hibernation
There are many research projects currently investigating how to achieve
"induced hibernation" in humans.[8] [9] This ability to hibernate humans would be useful for a
number of reasons, such as saving the lives of seriously ill or injured people by temporarily
putting them in a state of hibernation until treatment can be given.
There are cases of accidental human hibernation. The most recent is the case of Mitsutaka
Uchikoshi, a Japanese man who survived the cold for 24 days in 2006 without food or water
when he fell into a hypothermic state similar to hibernation.[10]

See also

Cryonics
Cryptobiosis
Life extension
Near death experience

External links

Mark Roth: Suspended animation is within our grasp

Pitt scientists resurrect hope of cheating death
Suspended Animation: Bringing Back the Dead?
"Stuck Pig" article at Wired.com
Hydrogen sulfide does not induce hypometabolism in sheep
Suspended Animation Technology arrives
Laboratory of Mark B. Roth at the Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center

Suspended animation and People of the Cave in Quran

Notes and References

1. News: Longest frozen embryo baby born. BBC News. 6 July 2005. 14 January 2009.
2. News: [https://www.timesonline.co.uk/article/0,,11069-1682474,00.html Triplets
born 13 years apart]. Times Online. 6 July 2005. 24 January 2010.
3. News: Pitt scientists resurrect hope of cheating death. Pittsburgh Tribune-Review. 29
June 2005. 10 October 2006. Jennifer Bails.
4. News: Doctors claim suspended animation success. The Sidney Morning Herald. 20
January 2006. 10 October 2006.
5. News: Gas induces 'suspended animation'. BBC News. 9 October 2006. 10 October
2006.
6. Haouzi P, Notet V, Chenuel B, Chalon B, Sponne I, Ogier V, Bihain B. H2S induced
hypometabolism in mice is missing in sedated sheep. Repiratory Physiology &Amp;
Neurobiology. 160. 1. 2008. 109115. 17980679. 10.1016/j.resp.2007.09.001.
7. Li. Jia. Zhang, Gencheng; Cai, Sally; Redington, Andrew N. 2008. January. Effect of
inhaled hydrogen sulfide on metabolic responses in anesthetized, paralyzed, and
mechanically ventilated piglets. Pediatric Critical Care Medicine. 9. 1. 110112. 23
March 2008. H2S does not appear to have hypometabolic effects in ambiently cooled
large mammals and conversely appears to act as a hemodynamic and metabolic
stimulant.. 10.1097/01.PCC.0000298639.08519.0C. Subscription required.
18477923.
8. http://www.livescience.com/health/050421_hibernation.html New Hibernation
Technique Might Work on Humans | LiveScience
9. http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/uk/science/article1845294.ece Race to be
first to 'hibernate' human beings - Times Online