By Matthieu Swigonski | Published
In the movie 28 days latera team of animal rights activists unknowingly triggers a zombie apocalypse after freeing a chimpanzee infected with a rabies virus, teaching everyone the valuable lesson that humanity should not play with nature, especially when it is inside a laboratory. In the case of “We hope it doesn’t come back and literally bite us,” a team of scientists in China has discovered a revolutionary method for keeping the brain alive after death, and it all starts with everyone’s liver. places. In the study, the team took a closer look at liver function and its impact on the brain after cardiac arrest.
In a recent study published in the medical journal EMBO Molecular Medicine, a team of researchers based at Sun Yat-Sen University examined possible methods for keeping a person’s brain alive after death, particularly in cases of cardiac event. In today’s modern world, medical advancements have allowed first responders to resuscitate people whose hearts have stopped. However, despite these medical advances, there is still a very short period of time in which a person can be resuscitated without suffering serious damage to their vital organs, such as their brain.
The connection with the liver
When a person experiences cardiac arrest, the brain is then deprived of oxygen and blood flow, causing brain activity to stop within just a few seconds, opening the possibility of catastrophic damage, including swelling of the brain as well as brain cell death.
In an attempt to extend the short window to avoid brain damage in victims of cardiac arrest, the research team chose to test the viability of maintaining functional function in the livers of Tibetan miniature pigs after death, then to observe the effect that the process could have on the brains of mini-pigs after resuscitation.
In the past, research has highlighted the fact that the liver is an essential part of the functioning of the rest of the body in the event of cardiac arrest. According to the research, patients with a history of liver disease or other liver complications were at higher risk of death in the event of cardiac arrest, making it more difficult to keep their brains alive after death, making it less effective resuscitation.
The team of researchers from Sun Yat-Sen University decided to take a closer look at the importance of the liver and test whether this organ was capable of helping the brain after cardiac arrest.
The experience
In their study, the team of researchers prevented blood flow to the mini-pigs’ brains, while connecting their livers to a life support system that promoted circulation. After several tests against the clock, the researchers then tried to keep the pigs’ brains alive after death using the same method. To study their results, the researchers then euthanized the pigs and compared them to a control group of pigs whose blood flow was unaffected.
According to the researchers, pigs whose livers were attached to life support fared significantly better than pigs whose livers remained intact after death, showing fewer signs of damage than the control group of pigs.
In the study, researchers were then able to restore brain activity in the pigs, focusing on the liver, up to 50 minutes after blood flow to the brain stopped. This means they were able to keep their brains alive after death longer than the control group of pigs whose livers remained intact.
Could save lives
“Our study highlights the crucial role of the liver in the pathogenesis of post-(cardiac arrest) brain injury,” the researchers wrote in their study. “Knowledge gained from current and future studies has the potential to improve survival and outcomes for patients suffering from (cardiac arrest).” »
Source: EMBO Molecular Medicine