Researchers from Yale University revealed that they were able to restore the vital functions of the pig’s body organs an hour after death, indicating that the cells are not dying as quickly as scientists assumed.
In a study published in the journal Nature, Wednesday, researchers used a system they developed called “OrganEx”, which allows oxygen to be recycled in the dead pig’s body and to preserve cells and some organs after cardiac arrest.
CNN said that this advanced technology could one day help preserve human organs for a longer period, providing a greater opportunity for transplanting those organs to other people.
“These cells turn on after hours off,” said Nenad Sestan, professor of neurosciences, comparative medicine, genetics and psychiatry at Yale University, who led the study.
“This tells us that cell death can be halted and functions restored in multiple vital organs even one hour after death,” he added at a press briefing.
The “OrganEx” system pumps a fluid called “perfusate” mixed with blood throughout the blood vessels of the dead pigs, as the perfusate contains a synthetic form of the protein hemoglobin and many other compounds and molecules that help protect cells and prevent blood clots.
After six hours of treatment with “OrganEx”, the study, published in the scientific journal “Nature”, on Wednesday, found that some key cellular functions were active in many areas of the pigs’ bodies – including the heart, liver and kidneys, and that some organ function was restored.
While the research is still at a very early stage, the researchers said they hope their work in pigs will eventually be applied to humans primarily in terms of developing ways to preserve organs before transplants.
Millions of people around the world are currently waiting for organ transplants, as the supply of organs is very limited.
“I think the technology holds a great deal of hope for our ability to preserve organs after they’ve been removed from a donor,” co-author Stephen Latham, director of the Yale Interdisciplinary Center for Bioethics, said in a press conference.
The researchers explained that they are not bringing pigs back to life and that more work needs to be done to understand whether the organs are usable for transplants.
“It’s a fascinating and incredibly important study,” said Sam Parnea, associate professor of critical care medicine and director of critical care and resuscitation research at New York University’s Grossman School of Medicine.
“It shows that after death, cells in mammalian organs (including humans) do not die like the brain for several hours,” Parnia, who was not involved in the study, told Science Media in London.