Russian scientists have managed to revive the heart of a frog after freezing it for 45 days as part of experiments aiming to prolong the period during which an organ is able to function normally and vitally.
This achievement is a significant development in the organ transplant field that would contribute in saving people’s lives.
Organ transplants such as kidneys and heart had long been a fictional idea. However, such transplants are currently practiced in hospitals in many countries.
But transplant scientists and surgeons now face a challenge in the ability of maintaining a specific organ functional after removing it from the donor. For instance, the period during which the heart muscle can be preserved before transferring it to the patient is not more than 6 hours, and this timeframe may not be sufficient for the transfer.
Studies indicate that doctors spoil about 60 percent of the organs that were preserved to be used later to treat patients, because of the time factor. Cells begin to lose capacity to carry out their vital functions, turning the organs useless.
The Russian Advanced Research Foundation has launched a scientific project aimed at developing a modern method to preserve human organs for an unlimited period of time without affecting their vital functions.
In the course of the experiments, scientists froze the heart of a frog and kept it at a temperature of -196 degrees Celsius for a month and a half, and then revived it. The post-revival tests showed that the heart was able to function vitally.
The head of the design team working on this project, Anatoly Kovtun, said that the success of these experiments would revolutionize the transfer of organs and transplant.
Finding a solution to the time challenge may help establish a "bank of frozen organs", which may save the lives of thousands of patients, he added in a press statement.
