Hibernation/Cryogenics For Manned Missions

[marcel_leonard]

Hibernation/ Cryogenics:<br /><br />I don’t know for sure but it would seem to me that the best way to plan a manned mission to Mars for example; would be if the crew were in some type of suspended animation. Is NASA/JPL experimenting with putting crews in stasis for long duration mission? <br /> <div class="Discussion_UserSignature"> "A mind is a terrible thing to waste..." </div>

 

[vogon13]

Longest anyone has survived near drowning in cold water is less than an hour, I think. Not sure if grant money available for studies to lengthen interval. Someone will probably make research breakthrough on bears hibernation someday but not sure I'd volunteer for clinical study group. Always figured frozen gametes/womb-u-lator would be used on interstellar flights. Enjoy seeing many more posts on this topic! <br /><br /><br /><br />Who you gonna' call? SDC!!!!!<br />-me, just now <div class="Discussion_UserSignature"> <p><font color="#ff0000"><strong>TPTB went to Dallas and all I got was Plucked !!</strong></font></p><p><font color="#339966"><strong>So many people, so few recipes !!</strong></font></p><p><font color="#0000ff"><strong>Let's clean up this stinkhole !!</strong></font> </p> </div>

 

[marcel_leonard]

<font color="yellow">Someone will probably make research breakthrough on bears hibernation someday but not sure I'd volunteer for clinical study group. Always figured frozen gametes/womb-u-lator would be used on interstellar flights. Enjoy seeing many more posts on this topic! <br /></font><br /><br />I posted a topic on hibernating bears for deep space missions. It recieved zero response.... <div class="Discussion_UserSignature"> "A mind is a terrible thing to waste..." </div>

 

[vogon13]

Interesting article, didn't realize bears had to biochemically do anything to stop bone loss, just figured bone loss stopped on its own when rest of bear shut down. Always amazes me how rigid my perspective can be on some topics. Thanks for link. <div class="Discussion_UserSignature"> <p><font color="#ff0000"><strong>TPTB went to Dallas and all I got was Plucked !!</strong></font></p><p><font color="#339966"><strong>So many people, so few recipes !!</strong></font></p><p><font color="#0000ff"><strong>Let's clean up this stinkhole !!</strong></font> </p> </div>

 

[bushuser]

This is an area where some serious research money would yield medical benefits far beyond the space program. But also imagine the problems in the veterinary study of mammal hibernation. Natural hibernation has nothing in common with the process in our favorite sci-fi movies. It is more akin to a deep sleep. If you disturb the animal by sampling blood, etc. it quickly awakens and alters test results. The kind of tests you need to perform are actually a lot more invasive than just blood sampling. In a zoo setting, animals prefer eating to hibernation, so you must practically starve captive animals to induce them to hibernate. Creative people with deep pockets should eventually get around these problems and unlock the mystery of this important adaptation. <br />What part of this knowledge can safely be translated to humans remains to be seen, but there's not a huge difference between the genome of a human and a bear.<br /><br />Cryo freezing of live people is a separate issue, and there's little reason for optimism there. While its true some fish and reptiles can survive freezing, their cold-blooded brains and enzymes systems are very different from mammals.

 

[craigmac]

I find this topic is fascinating and I'm also a bit surprised that more headway hadn't been achieved in the field of study....

 

[marcel_leonard]

<font color="yellow">stevehw33-<br />At present there are no known ways to make humans hibernate. We don't have the genetic mechanisms built in to do it, like bears and other critters do. It'd probably require quite a few metabolic changes to create a hibernating human, or one who could be induced to hibernate by external means. <br /></font><br /><br />How about chemicaly inducing a temporary coma like state; for part of the trip to Mars. This would greatly reduce the comsumption of life support resources... <div class="Discussion_UserSignature"> "A mind is a terrible thing to waste..." </div>

 

[craigmac]

Here is an interesting articale regarding human hibernation. I also looking for any studies from coma researchers...

 

[spayss]

The principal problem is toxic build up in every cell of the body. You would die. If you did have a means of voiding regularly then you would die of dehydration. <br /><br /> We are not even at the baby step stage for any type of cyrogenics, hibernation, etc. Thousands of people die everyday because we can't circumvent the kidneys or the liver or the pancreas, ...let alone all of them at once and all the intricate interaction.

 

[marcel_leonard]

Then how do coma victims who have been out for more than a year or two survive? <div class="Discussion_UserSignature"> "A mind is a terrible thing to waste..." </div>

 

[spayss]

Coma victims are functioning like any other human beings. Their metabolism is functioning . They are not in any type of suspended state. Their hearts beat, blood circulate, hormones function, even most of the brain functions are still there. Someone who goes into a coma at the age of 6 isn't still '6' if they come out of it 2 years later. When you go to bed at night and sleep for 8 hours...you don't subtract those 8 hours from your life....the person who sleeps for 9 hours does't subtract 9 hours.

 

[marcel_leonard]

However for about 8-9 hours they aren't using as much energy or consuming as much power....<br /><br />That alone is worth looking into... <div class="Discussion_UserSignature"> "A mind is a terrible thing to waste..." </div>

 

[fatjoe]

<font color="yellow">spayss-<br />Coma victims are functioning like any other human beings. Their metabolism is functioning . They are not in any type of suspended state. Their hearts beat, blood circulate, hormones function, even most of the brain functions are still there. Someone who goes into a coma at the age of 6 isn't still '6' if they come out of it 2 years later. When you go to bed at night and sleep for 8 hours...you don't subtract those 8 hours from your life....the person who sleeps for 9 hours does't subtract 9 hours. </font><br /><br />It would seem that the key to suspended animation is held within the Metabolism....

 

[fatjoe]

Just think of the possiblities for exploration if we could find a simple form of suspended animation...