Pigs serve more purposes than simply producing pork.
Pigs, frequently used in the medical field, have served as organ donors, such as hearts and heart valves. They continue to serve as a vital part of medical research and advances in technology.
Yale University researchers recently shared study results of a new technology used to restore blood flow circulation and cell activity in the vital organs of pigs, more than an hour after the death of the animal, reports Nature.
What was once considered “irreversible” when blood circulation and oxygenation stop, this technology proved otherwise.
The system, called OrganEx, pumps a blood substitute through the animal’s body to slow the body’s decomposition and restore some organ functions, specifically the heart, liver and kidneys. No coordinated brain activity was observed to indicate that the animals regained consciousness.
The blood substitute includes a variety of compounds to suppress blood clotting and the immune system and slow decomposition of the animal’s body.
“We’re not saying it’s clinically relevant, but it’s moving in the right direction,” says Zvonimir Vrselja, a neuroscientist at Yale University.
During the study, after death from induced cardiac arrest, the pigs were given the OrganEx technology, and after six hours, the researchers detected activity in the heart, liver and cells of vital organs. Other pigs were connected to an extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (ECMO) machine, which is used in hospitals today as a last-ditch effort to supply oxygen and remove carbon dioxide from the body.
Organ Ex technology proved to be superior.
“If the cellular restoration findings can be replicated in animals and eventually humans, their implications for human longevity could be as ‘profound’ as the advent of CPR and ventilators,” says Nita Farahany , neuroscientist at Duke University to Nature.
This could one day lead to greater preservation of transplanted organs, allowing more time for donor organs to reach the recipient.
Although the study and technology remain in their early stages, these findings could one day lead to increased success in organ transplantation and saving lives worldwide.