1
|
Kataoka M, Gyngell C, Savulescu J, Sawai T. The Ethics of Human Brain Organoid Transplantation in Animals. NEUROETHICS-NETH 2023; 16:27. [PMID: 37809032 PMCID: PMC10550858 DOI: 10.1007/s12152-023-09532-3] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/29/2023] [Accepted: 09/11/2023] [Indexed: 10/10/2023]
Abstract
In this paper, we outline how one might conduct a comprehensive ethical evaluation of human brain organoid transplantation in animals. Thus far, ethical concerns regarding this type of research have been assumed to be similar to those associated with other transplants of human cells in animals, and have therefore not received significant attention. The focus has been only on the welfare, moral status, or mental capacities of the host animal. However, the transplantation of human brain organoids introduces several new ethical issues. Many of these are related to uncertainty regarding whether or not brain organoids might be conscious. While these concerns might not be immediately relevant, they warrant closer scrutiny. We discuss how various ethical issues are relevant to different stages of human brain organoid transplantation and can guide the ethical evaluation of research. Our examination would broaden the horizons of the debate on the transplantation of brain organoids.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Masanori Kataoka
- Graduate School of Humanities and Social Sciences, Hiroshima University, Higashi-Hiroshima, Japan
| | - Christopher Gyngell
- Biomedical Ethics Research Group, Murdoch Children's Research Institute, Melbourne, Australia
- Department of Paediatrics, The University of Melbourne, Melbourne, Australia
- Melbourne Law School, The University of Melbourne, Melbourne, Australia
| | - Julian Savulescu
- Biomedical Ethics Research Group, Murdoch Children's Research Institute, Melbourne, Australia
- Faculty of Philosophy, The University of Oxford, Oxford, UK
- Centre for Biomedical Ethics, Yong Loo Lin School of Medicine, National University of Singapore, Singapore, Singapore
| | - Tsutomu Sawai
- Graduate School of Humanities and Social Sciences, Hiroshima University, Higashi-Hiroshima, Japan
- Centre for Biomedical Ethics, Yong Loo Lin School of Medicine, National University of Singapore, Singapore, Singapore
- Institute for the Advanced Study of Human Biology (ASHBi), Kyoto University, Kyoto, Japan
| |
Collapse
|
2
|
Cherry MJ. What Happens if the Brain Goes Elsewhere? Reflections on Head Transplantation and Personal Embodiment. THE JOURNAL OF MEDICINE AND PHILOSOPHY 2022; 47:240-256. [PMID: 35543468 DOI: 10.1093/jmp/jhab045] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Abstract
Brain transplants have long been no more than the subject of science fiction and engaging thought experiments. That is no longer true. Neuroscientists have announced their intention to transplant the head of a volunteer onto a donated body. Response has been decidedly mixed. How should we think about the moral permissibility of head transplants? Is it a life-saving/life-enhancing opportunity that appropriately expands the boundaries of medical practice? Or, is it a bioethical morass that ought not to be attempted? For the purposes of this paper, I set aside questions regarding the surgical operation's technological plausibility so as to focus on very basic questions regarding personal identity and the morality of head transplantation. The analysis begins with an exploration of the embodiment of persons. It considers whether persons can be conceptually distinguished from all parts of their body, even if they cannot be physically separated from some parts without loss of personhood. It argues that in most cases replacing body parts with reasonably similar parts will not destroy the conditions for sustaining personhood. However, as I explore, the phenomenology of personhood is such that some physical changes may prove to be too significant to maintain personal identity successfully over time. Given such complexity and the significance of the costs involved, the moral permissibility of head transplantation likely depends on recognizing that persons may give permission to collaborate in common activities, including projects with which others deeply disagree, provided that they only utilize the services and resources of free and consenting others.
Collapse
|
3
|
Cherry MJ, Fan R. Whole-Body/Head Transplantation: Personal Identity, Experimental Surgery, and Bioethics. THE JOURNAL OF MEDICINE AND PHILOSOPHY 2022. [DOI: 10.1093/jmp/jhab046] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/12/2022] Open
Abstract
Abstract
This issue of The Journal of Medicine and Philosophy brings together an international group of scholars from Hong Kong, Mainland China, and North America, critically to explore whole-body/head transplantation. The proposed procedure raises significant philosophical, ethical, and social/political questions. For example, assuming transplant is successful, who survives the surgery? Does personal identity necessarily follow the head? The contributors to this special thematic issue explore the nature and ground of personal identity, what it would mean to preserve personal identity, given such a significant set of physical changes, as well as the morality of such a procedure. As the authors make clear, careful conceptual philosophical analysis is essential for understanding whether whole-body/head transplantation is a life-saving/life-enhancing technological innovation, or a bioethical morass that should not be attempted. How we come to terms with such conceptual and moral concerns will have a significant impact on the future of medicine and medical technological innovation.
Collapse
|
4
|
Gkasdaris G, Birbilis T. First Human Head Transplantation: Surgically Challenging, Ethically Controversial and Historically Tempting – an Experimental Endeavor or a Scientific Landmark? MAEDICA 2019; 14:5-11. [PMID: 31123505 PMCID: PMC6511668 DOI: 10.26574/maedica.2019.14.1.5] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/19/2023]
Abstract
According to many, head transplantation is considered to be an extraordinary and impossible surgical procedure. However, nowadays, relevant literature and recent advances suggest that the first human head transplantation might be feasible. This innovative surgery promises a life-saving procedure to individuals who suffer from a terminal disease, but whose head and brain are healthy. Recently, the first cephalosomatic anastomosis in a human model was successfully performed, confirming the surgical feasibility of the procedure, but still not the real outcome. Skepticism and several considerations, including surgical, ethical and psychosocial issues, have emerged in the scientific community since this imaginary procedure seems to be more feasible than ever before.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Grigorios Gkasdaris
- 4th Surgical Department, "G. Papanikolaou" General Hospital, Thessaloniki, Greece
| | - Theodossios Birbilis
- Department of Neurosurgery, University Hospital of Alexandroupolis, School of Medicine, Democritus University of Thrace, Alexandroupolis, Greece
| |
Collapse
|
5
|
FARHUD DD. Ethical, Social & Psychological Challenges of Head Transplantation in Human. IRANIAN JOURNAL OF PUBLIC HEALTH 2018; 47:1232-1234. [PMID: 30319996 PMCID: PMC6174037] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/30/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Dariush D. FARHUD
- School of Public Health, Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran, Dept. of Basic Sciences/Ethics, Iranian Academy of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran,Correspondence to:
| |
Collapse
|
6
|
Are We Ready for a Human Head Transplant? The Obstacles That Must Be Overcome. CURRENT TRANSPLANTATION REPORTS 2018. [DOI: 10.1007/s40472-018-0196-7] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/17/2022]
|
7
|
Ausman JI. Is it time to perform the first human head transplant? Comment on the CSA (CephaloSomatic Ansatomisis) paper by Ren, Canavero, and colleagues. Surg Neurol Int 2018; 9:28. [PMID: 29492328 PMCID: PMC5820846 DOI: 10.4103/sni.sni_472_17] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/12/2017] [Accepted: 12/12/2017] [Indexed: 01/13/2023] Open
Affiliation(s)
- James I Ausman
- Emeritus Editor-in-Chief and Publisher, SNI Publications, Professor, Neurosurgery, David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA, Los Angeles, CA and Harbor-UCLA Medical Center, Torrance, CA, USA
| |
Collapse
|
8
|
Manjila S, Alambyan V, Singh G, Satish P, Geertman RT. From Hypothermia to Cephalosomatic Anastomoses: The Legacy of Robert White (1926-2010) at Case Western Reserve University of Cleveland. World Neurosurg 2018; 113:14-25. [PMID: 29408298 DOI: 10.1016/j.wneu.2018.01.175] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/07/2017] [Revised: 01/22/2018] [Accepted: 01/23/2018] [Indexed: 10/17/2022]
Abstract
Dr. Robert J. White (1926-2010) was an eminent neurosurgeon and bioethicist, renowned for his classic work in hypothermia and pioneering mammalian head transplant experiments. He founded the Division of Neurosurgery at the Cleveland Metropolitan General Hospital (currently MetroHealth Medical Center, a level 1 trauma county hospital) and became the youngest full professor at the Case Western Reserve University in Cleveland, Ohio. With over 500 research articles to his credit, he founded the Brain Research Laboratory at what was then the Cleveland Metropolitan General Hospital, which was also home to future leaders in neurosurgery, neurosciences, and allied specialties. He transferred a healthy monkey head onto a surgically beheaded monkey body under deep hypothermic conditions drawing both laurels and criticisms alike. Despite a largely controversial neurosurgical research career, his original contributions to deep hypothermia have found profound clinical applications in modern trauma and vascular neurosurgery. The new fusogens and myelorrhaphy methods being tried in Europe hold promise for a future of reanastomosing 2 homologous or heterologous tracts in the neuraxis.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Sunil Manjila
- Department of Neurosurgery, McLaren Bay Region Hospital, Michigan, USA.
| | - Vilakshan Alambyan
- Department of Neurosurgery, Metro Health Medical Center, Cleveland, Ohio, USA
| | - Gagandeep Singh
- Department of Neurosurgery, Metro Health Medical Center, Cleveland, Ohio, USA
| | - Priyanka Satish
- Department of Neurosurgery, Metro Health Medical Center, Cleveland, Ohio, USA
| | - Robert T Geertman
- Department of Neurosurgery, Metro Health Medical Center, Cleveland, Ohio, USA
| |
Collapse
|
9
|
Ren X, Li M, Zhao X, Liu Z, Ren S, Zhang Y, Zhang S, Canavero S. First cephalosomatic anastomosis in a human model. Surg Neurol Int 2017; 8:276. [PMID: 29279793 PMCID: PMC5705925 DOI: 10.4103/sni.sni_415_17] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/08/2017] [Accepted: 11/13/2017] [Indexed: 12/13/2022] Open
Abstract
Background: Cephalosomatic anastomosis (CSA) has never been attempted before in man as the transected spinal cords of the body donor and body recipient could not be “fused” back together. Recent advances made this possible. Here, we report on the surgical steps necessary to reconnect a head to a body at the cervical level. Methods: Full rehearsal of a CSA on two recently deceased human cadavers was performed at Harbin Medical University, Harbin, China. Results: The surgery took 18 hours to complete within the time frame planned for this surgery. Several advances resulted from this rehearsal, including optimization of the surgical steps, sparing of the main nerves (phrenics, recurrent laryngeal nerves), and assessment of vertebral stabilization. Conclusion: Several specialties are involved in a full-scale CSA, including neck surgery, vascular surgery, orthopedic surgery, plastic surgery, gastrointestinal surgery, and neurosurgery, as well as the operating staff. This rehearsal confirmed the surgical feasibility of a human CSA and further validated the surgical plan. Education and coordination of all the operating teams and coordination of the operative staff was achieved in preparation for the live human CSA.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Xiaoping Ren
- Hand and Microsurgical Center, 2 Affiliated Hospital, Harbin Medical University, Harbin, China.,State-Province Key Laboratories of Biomedicine-Pharmaceutics, Harbin Medical University, Harbin, China.,Heilongjiang Medical Science Institute, Harbin Medical University, Harbin, China.,Department of Molecular Pharmacology and Therapeutics, Stritch School of Medicine, Loyola University, Chicago, Illinois, USA
| | - Ming Li
- Hand and Microsurgical Center, 2 Affiliated Hospital, Harbin Medical University, Harbin, China.,State-Province Key Laboratories of Biomedicine-Pharmaceutics, Harbin Medical University, Harbin, China.,Heilongjiang Medical Science Institute, Harbin Medical University, Harbin, China
| | - Xin Zhao
- Hand and Microsurgical Center, 2 Affiliated Hospital, Harbin Medical University, Harbin, China.,State-Province Key Laboratories of Biomedicine-Pharmaceutics, Harbin Medical University, Harbin, China.,Heilongjiang Medical Science Institute, Harbin Medical University, Harbin, China
| | - Zehan Liu
- Hand and Microsurgical Center, 2 Affiliated Hospital, Harbin Medical University, Harbin, China.,State-Province Key Laboratories of Biomedicine-Pharmaceutics, Harbin Medical University, Harbin, China.,Heilongjiang Medical Science Institute, Harbin Medical University, Harbin, China
| | - Shuai Ren
- Hand and Microsurgical Center, 2 Affiliated Hospital, Harbin Medical University, Harbin, China.,State-Province Key Laboratories of Biomedicine-Pharmaceutics, Harbin Medical University, Harbin, China.,Heilongjiang Medical Science Institute, Harbin Medical University, Harbin, China
| | - Yafang Zhang
- Department of Anatomy, Harbin Medical University, Harbin, China
| | - Shide Zhang
- Department of Radiology, 2 Affiliated Hospital, Harbin Medical University, Harbin, China
| | - Sergio Canavero
- Turin Advanced Neuromodulation Group, Turin, Italy, Harbin Medical University, Harbin, China
| |
Collapse
|
10
|
Nikolić V, Savić S, Antunović V, Marinković S, Andrieux C, Tomić I. Decapitation in reality and fine art: A review. Forensic Sci Int 2017; 280:103-112. [DOI: 10.1016/j.forsciint.2017.09.014] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/20/2017] [Revised: 08/07/2017] [Accepted: 09/18/2017] [Indexed: 12/27/2022]
|
11
|
Furr A, Hardy MA, Barret JP, Barker JH. Surgical, ethical, and psychosocial considerations in human head transplantation. Int J Surg 2017; 41:190-195. [PMID: 28110028 PMCID: PMC5490488 DOI: 10.1016/j.ijsu.2017.01.077] [Citation(s) in RCA: 12] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/22/2016] [Revised: 01/11/2017] [Accepted: 01/14/2017] [Indexed: 12/14/2022]
Abstract
Transplanting a head and brain is perhaps the final frontier of organ transplantation. The goal of body-to-head transplantation (BHT) is to sustain the life of individuals who suffer from terminal disease, but whose head and brain are healthy. Ideally BHT could provide a lifesaving treatment for several conditions where none currently exists. BHT is no ordinary experiment, to transfer a head to another body involves extraordinarily complex medical challenges as well as ethical and existential dilemmas that were previously confined to the imagination of writers of fiction. The possibility of replacing an incurably ill body with a healthy one tests not only our surgical limits, but also the social and psychological boundaries of physical life and alters what we recognize life to be. The purpose of this target article, the complementary manuscript focused on immunological issues in BHT, and the accompanying Commentaries by scholars and practitioners in medicine, immunology, and bioethics is to review major surgical and psychosocial-ethical and immunological considerations surrounding body-to-head transplantation. We hope that together these ideas will provide readers with a comprehensive overview of the possibilities and challenges associated with BHT and initiate professional discussion and debate through which this new frontier in medicine is considered and approached.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Allen Furr
- Haley Center 7018, Auburn University, Auburn, AL, 36849, USA.
| | - Mark A Hardy
- Department of Surgery, Columbia University College of Physicians and Surgeons, 161 Fort, Washington Ave., Herbert Irving Pavilion 5-549, New York, NY, 10032, USA.
| | - Juan P Barret
- University Hospital Vall d'Hebron, Universitat Autonoma de Barcelona, Barcelona, Spain.
| | - John H Barker
- Frankfurt Initiative for Regenerative Medicine, Experimental Orthopedics & Trauma Surgery, J.W. Goethe-University, Friedrichsheim Orthopedic Hospital, Haus 97 B, 1OG, Marienburgstr. 2, 60528, Frankfurt/Main, Germany.
| |
Collapse
|
12
|
Li PW, Zhao X, Zhao YL, Wang BJ, Song Y, Shen ZL, Jiang HJ, Jin H, Canavero S, Ren XP. A cross-circulated bicephalic model of head transplantation. CNS Neurosci Ther 2017; 23:535-541. [PMID: 28429535 DOI: 10.1111/cns.12700] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/13/2017] [Revised: 03/17/2017] [Accepted: 03/21/2017] [Indexed: 11/30/2022] Open
Abstract
AIMS A successful cephalosomatic anastomosis ("head transplant") requires, among others, the ability to control long-term immune rejection and avoidance of ischemic events during the head transference phase. We developed a bicephalic model of head transplantation to study these aspects. METHODS AND RESULTS The thoracic aorta and superior vena cava of a donor rat were anastomosed with the carotid artery and extracorporeal veins of a recipient rat by vascular grafts. Before thoracotomy in the donor rat, the axillary artery and vein of the donor were connected to the carotid and the extracranial vein of the third rat through a silicone tube. The silicone tube was passed through a peristaltic pump to ensure donor brain tissue blood supply. There is no ischemia reperfusion injury in donor brain tissue analyzed by electroencephalogram. Postoperative donor has pain reflex and corneal reflex. CONCLUSIONS Peristaltic pump application can guarantee the blood supply of donor brain tissue per unit time, while the application of temperature change device to the silicone tube can protect the brain tissue hypothermia, postoperative experimental data show that there is no brain tissue ischemia during the whole operation. The application of vascular grafting can also provide the possibility of long-term survival of the model.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Peng-Wei Li
- Hand and Microsurgery Center, the Second Affiliated Hospital of Harbin Medical University, Nangang District, Harbin, China
| | - Xin Zhao
- Hand and Microsurgery Center, the Second Affiliated Hospital of Harbin Medical University, Nangang District, Harbin, China
| | - Yun-Long Zhao
- Hand and Microsurgery Center, the Second Affiliated Hospital of Harbin Medical University, Nangang District, Harbin, China
| | - Bing-Jian Wang
- Hand and Microsurgery Center, the Second Affiliated Hospital of Harbin Medical University, Nangang District, Harbin, China
| | - Yang Song
- Hand and Microsurgery Center, the Second Affiliated Hospital of Harbin Medical University, Nangang District, Harbin, China
| | - Zi-Long Shen
- Hand and Microsurgery Center, the Second Affiliated Hospital of Harbin Medical University, Nangang District, Harbin, China
| | - Hong-Jun Jiang
- Hand and Microsurgery Center, the Second Affiliated Hospital of Harbin Medical University, Nangang District, Harbin, China
| | - Hai Jin
- Hand and Microsurgery Center, the Second Affiliated Hospital of Harbin Medical University, Nangang District, Harbin, China
| | - Sergio Canavero
- HEAVEN/GEMINI International Collaborative Group, Turin, Italy
| | - Xiao-Ping Ren
- Hand and Microsurgery Center, the Second Affiliated Hospital of Harbin Medical University, Nangang District, Harbin, China.,State-Province Key Laboratories of Biomedicine-Pharmaceutics, Harbin Medical University, Nangang District, Harbin, China.,Department of Molecular Pharmacology and Therapeutics, Stritch School of Medicine, Loyola University, Maywood, IL, USA
| |
Collapse
|
13
|
Abstract
Background Since the turn of the last century, the prospect of head transplantation has captured the imagination of scientists and the general public. Recently, head transplant has regained attention in popular media, as neurosurgeons have proposed performing this procedure in 2017. Given the potential impact of such a procedure, we were interested in learning the history of the technical hurdles that need to be overcome, and determine if it is even technically possible to perform such a procedure on humans today. Method We conducted a historical review of available literature on the technical challenges and developments of head transplantation. The many social, psychological, ethical, religious, cultural, and legal questions of head transplantation were beyond the scope of this review. Results Our historical review identified the following important technical considerations related to performing a head transplant: maintenance of blood flow to an isolated brain via vessel anastomosis; availability of immunosuppressive agents; spinal anastomosis and fusion following cord transfection; pain control in the recipient. Several animal studies have demonstrated success in maintaining recipient cerebral perfusion and achieving immunosuppression. However, there is currently sparse evidence in favor of successful spinal anastomosis and fusion after transection. While recent publications by an Italian group offer novel approaches to this challenge, research on this topic has been sparse and hinges on procedures performed in animal models in the 1970s. How transferrable these older methods are to the human nervous system is unclear and warrants further exploration. Conclusions Our review identified several important considerations related to performing a viable head transplantation. Besides the technical challenges that remain, there are important ethical issues to consider, such as exploitation of vulnerable patients and informed consent. Thus, besides the remaining technical challenges, these ethical issues will also need to be addressed before moving these studies to the clinic.
Collapse
|
14
|
Ren X, Orlova EV, Maevsky EI, Bonicalzi V, Canavero S. Brain protection during cephalosomatic anastomosis. Surgery 2016; 160:5-10. [DOI: 10.1016/j.surg.2016.01.026] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/12/2015] [Revised: 12/23/2015] [Accepted: 01/12/2016] [Indexed: 01/09/2023]
|
15
|
Canavero S, Ren X, Kim CY, Rosati E. Neurologic foundations of spinal cord fusion (GEMINI). Surgery 2016; 160:11-19. [PMID: 27180142 DOI: 10.1016/j.surg.2016.01.027] [Citation(s) in RCA: 28] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/10/2015] [Revised: 01/08/2016] [Accepted: 01/21/2016] [Indexed: 12/17/2022]
Abstract
Cephalosomatic anastomosis has been carried out in both monkeys and mice with preservation of brain function. Nonetheless the spinal cord was not reconstructed, leaving the animals unable to move voluntarily. Here we review the details of the GEMINI spinal cord fusion protocol, which aims at restoring electrophysiologic conduction across an acutely transected spinal cord. The existence of the cortico-truncoreticulo-propriospinal pathway, a little-known anatomic entity, is described, and its importance concerning spinal cord fusion emphasized. The use of fusogens and electrical stimulation as adjuvants for nerve fusion is addressed. The possibility of achieving cephalosomatic anastomosis in humans has become reality in principle.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
| | - XiaoPing Ren
- Hand and Microsurgical Center, the Second Affiliated Hospital of Harbin Medical University; State-Province Key Laboratories of Biomedicine-Pharmaceutics, Harbin Medical University, Harbin, China; Department of Molecular Pharmacology and Therapeutics, Stritch School of Medicine, Loyola University Chicago, Chicago, IL
| | - C-Yoon Kim
- Department of Bioengineering, College of Life Science, CHA University, Seoul, Korea; Department of Laboratory Animal Medicine, College of Veterinary Medicine, Seoul National University, Seoul, Korea
| | | |
Collapse
|
16
|
Ye Y, Kim CY, Miao Q, Ren X. Fusogen-assisted rapid reconstitution of anatomophysiologic continuity of the transected spinal cord. Surgery 2016; 160:20-25. [PMID: 27138179 DOI: 10.1016/j.surg.2016.03.023] [Citation(s) in RCA: 24] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/03/2015] [Revised: 02/04/2016] [Accepted: 03/25/2016] [Indexed: 11/26/2022]
Abstract
The GEMINI spinal cord fusion protocol exploits the ability of so-called fusogens, such as polyethylene glycol (PEG), to achieve rapid neural restoration of electrical continuity across the ends of a transected spinal cord. Experimental evidence suggests that motor recovery can occur after complete transection of the cervical and dorsal spinal cord in mice and rats following application of PEG. This allows for the possibility of spinal cord "reconstruction" in humans and even the possibility of head transplantation in the future.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Yijie Ye
- Hand and Microsurgical Center, 2nd Affiliated Hospital, Harbin Medical University, Harbin, China; State-Province Key Laboratories of Biomedicine-Pharmaceutics, Harbin Medical University, Harbin, China
| | - C-Yoon Kim
- College of Life Science, Department of Bioengineering, CHA University, Seoul, Korea; Department of Laboratory Animal Medicine, College of Veterinary Medicine, Seoul National University, Seoul, Korea
| | - Qing Miao
- Hand and Microsurgical Center, 2nd Affiliated Hospital, Harbin Medical University, Harbin, China; State-Province Key Laboratories of Biomedicine-Pharmaceutics, Harbin Medical University, Harbin, China
| | - Xiaoping Ren
- Hand and Microsurgical Center, 2nd Affiliated Hospital, Harbin Medical University, Harbin, China; State-Province Key Laboratories of Biomedicine-Pharmaceutics, Harbin Medical University, Harbin, China.
| |
Collapse
|
17
|
Affiliation(s)
- Xiao-Ping Ren
- Hand and Microsurgical Center, The Second Affiliated Hospital of Harbin Medical University, Harbin, China.,State-Province Key Laboratories of Biomedicine-Pharmaceutics, Harbin Medical University, Harbin, China.,Department of Molecular Pharmacology & Therapeutics, Stritch School of Medicine, Loyola University Chicago, Chicago, IL, USA
| |
Collapse
|
18
|
Ren X, Canavero S. Human head transplantation. Where do we stand and a call to arms. Surg Neurol Int 2016; 7:11. [PMID: 26862450 PMCID: PMC4743270 DOI: 10.4103/2152-7806.175074] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/21/2015] [Accepted: 11/27/2015] [Indexed: 11/04/2022] Open
|