Archive for the 'Medications' Category

Hypothermia, shivering and cryonics

Monday, April 28th, 2008

The objective of cryonics stabilization is to arrest metabolism of the patient so that he can be preserved indefinitely until resuscitation and rejuvenation technologies are available. Induction of hypothermia is the principal method employed in cryonics to reduce metabolism, thereby slowing down the rate of all chemical reactions in the body, including the ischemia-induced cellular [...]

Neuroprotection for ischemic stroke

Thursday, April 17th, 2008

The journal Neuropharmacology recently published a new review of the current state of the art in neuroprotection for ischemic stroke. A strict definition of a neuroprotectant excludes agents that have as their goal circulatory patency or the reversal of vascular occlusion, such as thrombolytics and anticoagulants. As a consequence, the only medication that is approved [...]

Systemic administration of L-Kynurenine

Tuesday, December 11th, 2007

L-Kynurenine (L-KYN) is one of the neuroprotective agents used in cryonics stabilization protocol to limit injury to the brain after cardiac arrest. Administration of L-KYN was perceived to be essential to resuscitate dogs from extended periods (up to 17 minutes) of normothermic ischemia during the Critical Care Research (CCR) cerebral resuscitation experiments in the [...]

Human cryopreservation combinational pharmacotherapy

Wednesday, November 28th, 2007

A comprehensive review of cryonics stabilization medications is now published on the Alcor website.
Table of contents:
* Introduction
* General Anesthesia
* Blood Coagulation
* Vasoactive Medications
* Excitotoxity
* Free Radicals
* Nitric Oxide and PARP
* Inflammation
* Antibiotics
* Acidosis
* Hemodilution and Osmotic Therapy
* Coenzyme Q10
* Magnesium
* Na+ /H+ Exchange Inhibition
* Immunosuppressive Drugs
* Gastrointestinal Ischemia
* Depressed Metabolism
* Combining Medications
* Conclusion
If you enjoyed [...]

Hydrogen sulfide does not induce hypometabolism in sheep

Monday, November 12th, 2007

In a widely publicized series of experiments by Blackstone et al., hydrogen sulfide (H2S) was found to induce hypometabolism in mice. These experiments raised interest in whether such “suspended animation” could be achieved in humans. If administration of H2S would be able to reduce metabolic rate in humans to the same extent as observed in [...]

Combination therapy: The patient’s view

Friday, October 26th, 2007

One consequence of the growing understanding of the biochemical pathways involved in brain injury resulting from cardiac arrest, stroke, and brain trauma is that there is an increasing consensus among researchers that combination therapy is the most logical treatment for the multifactorial injury mechanisms responsible for neuronal death. In this context, combination therapy can [...]

Leukocytes and cerebral ischemia

Friday, September 21st, 2007

In their paper “The role of leukocytes following cerebral ischemia: pathogenic variable or bystander reaction to emerging infarct?” D.F. Emerich et al. review the literature on the involvement of neutrophils in cerebral ischemia:
“We reasoned that if neutrophils play an important pathogenic (i.e., cause-effect) role in the neuronal damage that follows a stroke, then one should [...]

Intranasal administration of vasoactive agents

Saturday, September 8th, 2007

Stabilization in cryonics requires immediate administration of vasoactive medications to maintain blood pressure, thereby assisting and enabling adequate perfusion during cardiopulmonary support. Traditionally, vasopressors such as epinephrine have been administered intravenously, requiring skilled technicians to establish an IV line as quickly as possible. Unfortunately, even the best technicians often encounter difficulties in obtaining an IV [...]