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A recent study gives insight into the #neurobiology of dying. Before the process of dying neurologists closely monitored patients with devastating #brain injuries following Do Not Resuscitate-Comfort Care orders. This gave key insights into the mechanisms and timing of events in the brain and the circulatory system during the dying process.

The objective of emergency treatment is to restore circulation to prevent #cerebral ischemia. #Cerebral ischemia is a condition that occurs when blood flow is restricted to the brain, which then causes the #death of brain tissue. Understanding the brain’s response to energy depletion can help us estimate how much time is available for resuscitation until irreversible damage has occurred. The goal is to develop methods that can prolong this window before irreversible damage takes place. Injury to central neurons begins only during the progressive and uncontrollable #depolarization of neurons called anoxic depolarization. This Anoxic depolarization “wave” is potentially reversible and typically starts 2 to 5 minutes after the emergence of severe ischemia. This marks the beginning of a toxic change within the neuron which eventually leads to irreversible brain injury.

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The idea of placing humans in stasis is one that has been explored in exhaustive detail through science fiction. Simply put it is the ability to quite literally press pause on our bodies and then wake up at an undefined time in the future.

While many (mostly millionaires) have tried and failed to perfect the technology it’s something that the US Military is now taking very seriously.

Its top secret research division known as DARPA has confirmed that it is now launching a Biostasis program where it will try to find a way of slowing the human body to an almost complete standstill.

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Space travel is dangerous for a lot of very obvious reasons — traveling off of Earth on a rocket has its risks, after all — but even when everything goes well it seems that a brief stay in space has the potential to alter a person’s very DNA. That’s the takeaway from a long-term NASA study that used astronaut Scott Kelly and his twin brother Mark as guinea pigs to see how living in space can affect the most basic building blocks of life.

Scott Kelly has spent over 500 days in space overall, but a huge chunk of that came with a single mission which had him stay aboard the International Space Station for 342 days. His brother Mark, who is a retired astronaut, is his identical twin and has the same DNA. This provided a never-before-possible opportunity for NASA to study how long-term space travel affects the human body and the genes that make us who we are. As it turns out, space really does change us, and upon Scott’s return to Earth it was discovered that his DNA has significantly changed.

Don’t Miss : 12 different Nexus smartphones just got deep discounts in Amazon’s one-day sale.

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