Head Transplant Surgeon Claims Human Brain Transplants Are 'Technically Feasible' - VICE

That’s the thought of arguable neurosurgeon Sergio Canavero, who claims successful a caller article that it could beryllium “technically feasible” to stave disconnected aging by simply scooping retired a person’s encephalon and plopping it into a younger, much agile body. The article, called “Whole encephalon transplantation successful man: Technically feasible” was published successful Surgical Neurology International (SNI), a peer-reviewed diary wherever Canavero serves arsenic an editor. 

If this process is ringing immoderate bells, it whitethorn beryllium due to the fact that Canavero enactment guardant a akin thought successful 2015 that proposed a afloat caput transplant. The assertion was bombastic, highly controversial, and, erstwhile helium aboriginal said helium had recovered a unpaid to acquisition the procedure, became planetary news. It became specified a sensation that it was  part of a Metal Gear Solid-related conspiracy theory. Many doctors disregarded the process arsenic not based successful existent science, and it has not been completed successful a unrecorded quality taxable to date. 

Canavero told Motherboard successful an email that caput transplants “work,” and that his erstwhile enactment was conscionable a stepping chromatic to a encephalon transplant.

“A quality caput transplant was the intermediate measurement towards a encephalon transplant. Since the second is considered impossible, I decided to absorption connected HT [head transplant], which is acold simpler,” Canavero said. “However, though I tin archer you HT works, unluckily it does not rejuvenate aged caput tissues, including the eyes. BT [Brain transplant] is the lone option.”

Canavero’s claims regarding caput transplants person been hard to verify. In 2017, SNI published enactment by Canavero and Chinese workfellow Xiaoping Ren—who is besides connected SNI’s editorial board—reporting a caput transplant rehearsal with quality cadavers. A unrecorded unpaid subject, a Russian antheral with a familial degenerative musculus atrophying disease, pulled out of the planned process successful 2019. Also successful that year, SNI published enactment by Canavero and Ren claiming to study successful spinal cord repair successful animals. 

Canavero told Motherboard he’s not escaped “to speech astir the HT task that unfolded successful China, different than saying it works.”

In his latest paper—which is co-edited by himself and Ren—Canavero describes however to theoretically region 1 person’s encephalon to spot it into the skull of either a clone oregon a donated and brain-dead “immunoconditioned” body. In summation to describing a “robotic scoop with retractable tines” that would pluck the brains from their skulls, Canavero besides provides imaginable solutions to respective outstanding questions surrounding encephalon transplants, including nervus and vascular reconnection methods.

“The unavailability of technologies that tin successfully rejuvenate an aged assemblage suggests that it is clip to research different options,” the insubstantial notes. “Contrary to communal lore, a afloat BT is achievable, astatine slightest theoretically. Of course, further extended cadaveric rehearsals volition beryllium necessary, followed by tests successful brain-dead organ donors (as e.g., done precocious successful kidney xenotransplants). New surgical tools volition person to beryllium developed. With due funding, a long-held imagination whitethorn yet travel true.”

The eventual extremity of specified a process would beryllium to widen the fig of years a idiosyncratic could bask surviving successful a “pristine body,” Canavero writes successful his paper. This reasoning is not dissimilar to that utilized by CRISPR advocates who suggest utilizing the exertion connected embryos to snip retired unwanted genetics that whitethorn pb to carnal oregon intelligence disabilities—a extremity which immoderate experts person flagged as being a revival of eugenics.

Problematic oregon not, determination is large involvement successful extending quality life, and an full subdivision of subject and pseudoscience dedicated to “transhumanism” and beingness extension, including among Silicon Valley elite. These methods see everything from taking circumstantial substances to “young blood” transfusions, cryogenics, and attempts to recreate humans arsenic immortal AI. Thus far, these attempts person not included having one’s encephalon transplanted into a clone of themselves. 

There are inactive large questions astir whether oregon not what Canavero proposes would ever really enactment successful a surviving quality being (especially since portion of the solution hinges connected processing quality clones), but his claims volition surely proceed to seizure the interest—and horror—of the public.