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Did a scientist bring a dead head to life? Doctors are ready to transplant a human head It all started with a fish.

The fantastic experiment of Philadelphia doctor Truman Doughty ended in triumph. His wife Brenda died many years ago, but her head is still “alive and well.” According to Doughty, Brenda is able to speak using a special device.

Now remember A. Belyaev’s novel “The Head of Professor Dowell.” Scientist Dowell created a solution with which the human head can lead a relatively full life. He is convinced that his discovery will bring good to people, but can this really be?

In 1902, the famous Russian physiologist A.A. Kulyabko, after reviving the child’s heart (removed from the corpse, it acted outside the body for several hours), tried to revive the head.
In the beginning it was the head of a fish. A special liquid, a blood substitute, was supplied to the head through the blood vessels. The result was incredible: the head moved its eyes and fins, opened and closed its mouth - all this eloquently indicated that it was alive!

In 1928, physiologists S.S. Bryukhonenko and S.I. Chechulin demonstrated the living head of a warm-blooded animal - a dog. Connected to the heart-lung machine, she was quite active. When a swab soaked in acid was placed on the tongue of a dog's head, it attempted to throw out the irritant; if a piece of sausage was placed in its mouth, the head licked itself. When a stream of air was directed into the eyes, they blinked.

In 1959, successful experiments with dog heads were repeatedly conducted by Professor V.P. Demikhov. At the same time, he was convinced that it was quite possible to maintain life in the human head.

Well, now about the most incredible thing: have similar experiments been carried out with the human head? This question is not simple and is associated with moral and deep social problems that surgeons will inevitably face when transplanting the head of one person to the torso of another. Therefore, this kind of information is always kept under the cover of secrecy.

And yet, in the mid-70s of the 20th century, a sensational message flashed in the press. Two German neurosurgeons, Wallner Kreiter and Henry Courage, managed to maintain life in an amputated human head for twenty days. A forty-year-old man who had just been injured in a car accident was brought to the clinic. His head was almost torn off from his body; saving the man was out of the question.

In this situation, neurosurgeons decided to try to keep life at least in the victim’s brain. A life support system was connected to the head, and for almost three weeks after that it kept the brain of a man whose body had long been dead active. Moreover, the doctors established contact with the head. True, she could not speak, she did not have a throat, but by the movement of her lips, scientists “read” many words, from which it clearly followed that she understood what was happening to her.

Finally, Philadelphia doctor Truman Doughty did the seemingly impossible. His wife Brenda was diagnosed with cancer. The terrible news prompted Truman to develop a life support device. The disease progressed rapidly, and the doctor lost hope of saving the dying woman. And then he made an attempt to save his head.

The entire operation took about six hours. Doughty knew full well that he could end up behind bars on murder charges. The doctor took a risk, but, as it turned out, the risk was not in vain. The fantastic experiment ended in triumph. By the way, Brenda did not doubt for a minute the need for the operation and agreed to it. For several years, Truman hid the fact that his wife’s head was alive and well. Only recently did the world learn about the incredible event. According to Doughty, Brenda is able to speak using a special device.
It’s hard to believe in all this, but one thing is clear: Alexander Belyaev’s scientific ideas have become a reality.

The world's first head transplant is due to take place at the end of 2017. Surgeon Sergio Canavero is going to transplant the head of Russian programmer Valery Spiridonov, who suffers from Werdnig-Hoffmann amyotrophy, onto a donor body. Meanwhile, a second candidate for transplant has appeared - 62-year-old Chinese Wang Huanmin.

Last chance

Our compatriot Valery Spiridonov has been suffering from an incurable disease since childhood. His limbs are practically useless, the man is unable to cope without outside help... He hopes that the operation will relieve him of his disability and make him a full-fledged person. Essentially, he has nothing to lose, he says. Death is better than such a life... And yet this is a chance.

Recently, 62-year-old Wang Huanmin announced his desire to become next. He previously worked for a gas company. Six years ago, an accident left Huanming completely paralyzed. The man hopes that they can help him at Harbin Medical University, where transplant surgeon Ren Xiaoping, who previously worked with Canavero, works. In 1999, he performed the world's first hand transplant operation in the United States.

Followers of Professor Dowell

The most famous story about head transplants is the science fiction story “The Head of Professor Dowell” by Alexander Belyaev. In this work, life in a severed head is maintained using a special solution. However, heads are also sewn to bodies...

In 1902, Russian physiologist A. A. Kulyabko conducted an experiment with the head of a fish. A special fluid, a blood substitute, was supplied to the brain through the blood vessels. As a result, the head could move its eyes and fins, and open and close its mouth.

In 1928, physiologists S.S. Bryukhonenko and S.I. Chechulin connected the severed head of a dog to a heart-lung machine and also achieved a certain activity... In particular, if a swab soaked in acid was placed on the dog’s tongue, the head made an attempt to get rid of it, if a piece of sausage was placed in her mouth - she licked her lips... If a stream was directed into the dog’s eyes, the head began to blink...

In 1959, Professor V.P. Demikhov conducted a series of successful experiments with dog heads. By the way, he argued that it is possible to maintain life in the human head in the same way...

In the mid-70s, media reports appeared that German neurosurgeons Wallner Kreiter and Henry Courage maintained life in an amputated human head for 20 days. The latter belonged to a forty-year-old man who was involved in a car accident. When he was brought to the clinic, his head was practically torn off from his body. It was still not possible to save the patient’s life, and the doctors decided to take a risk... They connected a life support system to the victim’s head, which kept his brain active for three weeks. Scientists claimed that they even managed to establish contact with the head. Although she could not speak fully, since she did not have vocal cords, she moved her lips... From “reading lips” it followed that a person deprived of a body was aware of what was happening...

Another sensational operation was allegedly performed in 1989 by Philadelphia doctor Truman Doughty. His wife Brenda was dying of cancer, and in desperation Doughty decided to try to save at least her head. Brenda agreed to the operation, which lasted about six hours. The head lived for several years! A special device even allowed her to speak...

However, since the last two cases are known only from the yellow press, their authenticity cannot be confirmed.

It is known that surgeons experimented on corpses, but these are not living people! Laboratory mice lived for about a day after transplantation.

Today, humanity is faced with the fact that its needs cannot be fully satisfied by land, because it occupies only a fifth of the planet’s surface. This is what makes earthlings penetrate into the depths of the seas, where inexhaustible riches are stored.

The first steps in mastering the “world without the sun” have already been taken. Artificial algae plantations and pastures for fish, crustaceans and mollusks are being created. And the discovery of huge reserves of manganese, iron and other minerals on the ocean floor is rapidly bringing us closer to the time when plants and factories can be erected on the continental shelf, mines will be operational, next to which there will be underwater settlements.

So, man has to explore the depths of the ocean. But how to do that? It is known that only the hero of A. Belyaev’s science fiction novel “Amphibian Man” - Ichthyander, to whom a brilliant surgeon transplanted shark gills, managed to exist under water. It must be said that A. Belyaev’s fiction was so attractive and seemed so plausible that some, back in the late 40s of the 20th century, accepted it as reality. In his fascinating book “Stories about Surgeons,” the famous Soviet doctor F.A. Kopylov cites an interesting fact.

“One of the surgeons working on the outskirts of the Soviet Union said that a village guy approached him with a request to transplant fish gills into him. There are no sharks in those parts, and the guy took a fancy to catfish gills. So that he could swim underwater for hours, as depicted in the novel ", this man was ready for anything. He thought through everything and provided for everything. The guy even offered to issue a special receipt so that the surgeon would not be stopped by the possibility of a fatal outcome of the operation."

To perform such an operation, despite the high level of development of medicine, until recently was considered impossible. However, recently the entire scientific world was shocked by a sensational message. In Cape Town, in the clinic that was once headed by K. Bernard, who was the first to successfully perform a human heart transplant, another stunning operation was performed.

A black youth, stricken with pulmonary failure (the result of advanced tuberculosis), had shark gills transplanted. The patient refused a donor lung transplant, explaining it as follows. Firstly, he does not have enough money to pay for the cost of this organ and the operation. And he was offered to undergo gill transplantation free of charge, at the expense of the scientific fund. Secondly, the young man himself became disillusioned with his way of life on earth and wanted to start all over again, already in the ocean. The operation was successful. Now doctors are carefully monitoring whether a rejection reaction of the transplanted organ will begin, trying to prevent this with the help of special drugs.

If everything that has been said is not an information canard, then very soon a real Ichthyander will be swimming in the ocean! Now remember A. Belyaev’s novel “The Head of Professor Dowell.” Scientist Dowell created a solution with which the human head can lead a relatively full life. He is convinced that his discovery will bring good to people, but can this really be?

In 1959, successful experiments with dog heads were repeatedly conducted by Professor V.P. Demikhov. At the same time, he was convinced that it was quite possible to maintain life in the human head.

In the novel by A. Belyaev "Professor Dowell's Head" The scientist has created a solution with which the human head can lead a relatively full life. He is convinced that his discovery will bring benefits to people - prolongation of life. But can a person really live separately from his body?

“Nonsense, absolutely unrealistic!” - the educated reader will exclaim. However, don't rush to conclusions.

In 1902, the famous Russian physiologist A. A. Kulyabko, after successfully reviving the child’s heart - taken out of the corpse, it acted outside the body for several hours (experimental data published in Izvestia of the Academy of Sciences) - tried to revive the head.

Kulyabko observes the experiment

In the beginning it was the head of a fish. A special liquid, a blood substitute, was supplied through the blood vessels to the severed head of the fish. The result was incredible: the head moved its eyes and fins, opened and closed its mouth - all this eloquently testified. that she lives!

They expressed themselves with grimaces, chomping, and an attempt to throw away the irritant. If a piece of sausage was placed in the mouth, the head would be licked. When a stream of air was directed into the eye, a blinking reaction was observed.

In 1959, Russian professor V.P. Demikhov repeatedly conducted successful experiments with dog heads. At the same time, he was convinced that it was quite possible to maintain life in the human head.

Demikhov's dogs

According to available information, American scientists are working in this area.

Thus, in 1973, American professor Robert White, convinced that in the future the brains of outstanding individuals should be preserved, conducted a series of experiments with animals. And he managed to perform a monkey head transplant. The details of this fantastic operation are as follows.

Professor R. White, despite the unusual nature of his experiment, already had a predecessor - the French surgeon Jean Labordea, who tried to revive a severed head 150 years ago. These experiments ended unsuccessfully.

Professor R. White experimented on rhesus monkeys. Animals of the same age were prepared for the experiment. During an 8-hour operation, he separated the monkey's head from its body in such a way that they remained connected to each other by only two arteries and two veins. It turned out that this was quite enough to continue the functioning of the brain.

And in the neighboring operating room, the clinic staff conducted a similar experiment on another monkey, which, according to the surgeons’ plan, was to be transplanted with a new head. According to R. White, the most difficult aspect of this operation was the separation of the head from the veins and arteries and its connection to the new organism. The difficulty lay primarily in the extraordinary shortness of the time allotted for this operation - only 4 minutes. This is exactly the time, exceeding which leads to irreversible processes occurring in the brain.

This transplant and three others that followed it recently showed that transplanted heads respond to light, sound, and smell. Monkeys squint their eyes when a flashlight is shined into them, follow with their eyes the people who are in the room, and open their mouths when asking for bananas.

The rest of the body, although it continues to live, is paralyzed: none of the signals from the brain reaches the organs, since the transmission of nerve impulses in the transplanted body is interrupted.

Well, now about the most incredible thing. Of course, everyone is concerned with the question: have similar experiments been carried out with the human head? This question is not simple and is associated with moral and deep social problems that surgeons will inevitably face when transplanting the head of one person to the torso of another. Therefore, this kind of information is always kept under the cover of secrecy.

And yet, in the mid-1970s, a sensational message flashed in the press. Two German neurosurgeons, Wallner Kreiger and Henry Courage, managed to maintain life in an amputated human head for 20 days.

The body of a 40-year-old man, who had just been injured in a car accident, was brought to the clinic. His head was almost torn off from his body and was supported only by a few veins. There was no question of saving a person. In this situation, neurosurgeons decided to try to keep life at least in the victim’s brain.

A life support system was connected to the head, and for almost three weeks after that, the brain of a person whose body had long been dead was kept active. Moreover, the doctors established contact with the head. True, the head could not speak, it did not have a throat, but by the movement of its lips, the scientists “read” many words, from which it clearly follows that it understands what is happening to it:

Finally, Philadelphia doctor Truman Doughty did the seemingly impossible. In 1989, his wife Brenda was diagnosed with cancer. The terrible news prompted Truman to develop a life support device. The disease progressed rapidly, and the doctor lost hope of saving the entire body of the dying woman. He made an attempt to save his head.

The most difficult thing, according to Doughty, was connecting his wife’s head to the created device. First of all, the doctor connected the power supply system, and then began amputating the head. The whole operation took about 6 hours. Doughty knew full well that if this risky venture ended in failure, he would inevitably end up behind bars on charges of murder. The doctor took a risk, but, as it turned out, the risk was not in vain. The fantastic experiment ended in triumph. By the way, Brenda did not doubt for a minute the need for the operation and agreed to it.

For several years, Truman hid the fact that his wife’s head was alive and well. Only Brenda's mother and her doctor knew about this. Only recently did the world learn about the incredible event. According to Doughty, Brenda is able to speak using a special device.

Information about the fantastic experiment was received sharply negatively by scientific and religious circles.

“They claim that I have taken on the role of God! - says T. Doughty. “I think the true reason for their criticism is different: ignorance and black envy.” I'm just prolonging the life of my wife. Let them say whatever they want, but one day they will understand that I have taken the first step on a path that will radically change our world.”

It is difficult to believe in all this, because what is said here is beyond the realm of possibility. But one thing is clear: A. Belyaev’s scientific ideas have become a reality.

The first steps in mastering the “world without the sun” have already been taken.

Artificial algae plantations and pastures for fish, crustaceans and mollusks are being created.
And the discovery of huge reserves of manganese, iron and other minerals on the ocean floor is rapidly bringing us closer to the time when plants and factories can be erected on the continental shelf, mines will be operational, next to which there will be underwater settlements.

So, man has to explore the depths of the ocean.
But how to do that?

It is known that only the hero of the science fiction novel “Amphibian Man” by A. Belyaev, Ichthyander, to whom a brilliant surgeon transplanted shark gills, managed to exist under water.
It must be said that A. Belyaev’s fiction was so attractive and seemed so plausible that some, back in the late 40s of our (!) century, accepted it as reality.

In his fascinating book “Stories about Surgeons,” the famous Soviet doctor F.A. Kopylov cites an interesting fact.

To swim underwater for hours, as depicted in the novel, this man was willing to do anything. He thought through everything and provided for everything.

The guy even offered to issue a special receipt so that the surgeon would not be stopped by the possibility of a fatal outcome of the operation."

To perform such an operation, despite the high level of development of medicine, until recently was considered impossible, but recently the entire scientific world was shocked by a sensational message.

In Cape Town, in the clinic that was once headed by K. Bernard, who was the first to successfully perform a human heart transplant, another stunning operation was performed.

A black youth, whose name is still kept secret, stricken with pulmonary failure (the result of advanced tuberculosis), had shark gills transplanted.
The patient refused a donor lung transplant, explaining it as follows.
Firstly, he does not have enough money to pay for the cost of this organ and the operation. And he was offered to undergo gill transplantation free of charge, at the expense of the scientific fund.
Secondly, the young man himself became disillusioned with his way of life on earth and wanted to start all over again, already in the ocean.

The operation was successful.
Now doctors are carefully monitoring whether a rejection reaction of the transplanted organ will begin, trying to prevent this with the help of special drugs.

If everything that has been said is not an information canard, then very soon a real Ichthyander will be swimming in the ocean!

Now remember the novel by A: Belyaev “The Head of Professor Dowell”.
Scientist Dowell created a solution with which the human head can lead a relatively full life.
He is convinced that his discovery will bring good to people, but can this really be?
Nonsense, absolutely unrealistic! - the educated reader will exclaim.
However, don't be so categorical.

In 1902, the famous Russian physiologist A.A. Kulyabko, after reviving the child's heart - removed from the corpse, it acted outside the body for several hours - tried to revive the head. In the beginning it was the head of a fish.

A special liquid, a blood substitute, was supplied through the blood vessels to the cut head.
The result was incredible: the head moved its eyes and fins, opened and closed its mouth - all this eloquently indicated that it was alive!

In 1928, physiologists S.S. Bryukhonenko and S.I. Chechulin showed the living head of a warm-blooded animal - a dog.

Connected to the heart-lung machine, she was quite active.
When a swab soaked in acid was placed on the tongue of a dog's head, it attempted to throw out the irritant; if a piece of sausage was placed in its mouth, the head licked itself.
When a stream of air was directed into the eyes, they blinked.

In 1959, successful experiments with dog heads were repeatedly conducted by Professor V.P. Demikhov.

At the same time, he was convinced that it was quite possible to maintain life in the human head.

Well, now about the most incredible thing: have similar experiments been carried out with the human head?
This question is not simple and is associated with moral and deep social problems that surgeons will inevitably face when transplanting the head of one person to the torso of another.
Therefore, this kind of information is always kept under the cover of secrecy.

And yet, in the mid-70s, a sensational message flashed in the press.

Two German neurosurgeons, Wallner Kreiter and Henry Courage, managed to maintain life in an amputated human head for twenty days.
A forty-year-old man who had just been injured in a car accident was brought to the clinic. His head was almost torn off from his body; saving the man was out of the question.

In this situation, neurosurgeons decided to try to keep life at least in the victim’s brain.
A life support system was connected to the head, and for almost three weeks after that it kept the brain of a man whose body had long been dead active.
Moreover, the doctors established contact with the head.
True, she could not speak, she did not have a throat, but by the movement of her lips, scientists “read” many words, from which it clearly followed that she understood what was happening to her.

Finally, Philadelphia doctor Truman Doughty did the seemingly impossible.

In 1989, his wife Brenda was diagnosed with cancer.
The terrible news prompted Truman to develop a life support device.
The disease progressed rapidly, and the doctor lost hope of saving the dying woman. And then he made an attempt to save his head.

The entire operation took about six hours.

Doughty knew full well that he could end up behind bars on murder charges. The doctor took a risk, but, as it turned out, the risk was not in vain. The fantastic experiment ended in triumph.
By the way, Brenda did not doubt for a minute the necessity of the operation and agreed to it.

For several years, Truman hid the fact that his wife’s head was alive and well. Only recently did the world learn about the incredible event.

According to Doughty, Brenda is able to speak using a special device.

It’s hard to believe all this, but one thing is clear:

Alexander Belyaev's scientific ideas became reality.

Text: Alexander POTAPOV

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