Brain Activity After Death? The Alzheimer’s Breakthrough скачать в хорошем качестве

Brain Activity After Death? The Alzheimer’s Breakthrough

What happens to the human brain after death? 🧠 In this episode of Big Question, Dr. Insoo Hyun speaks with Bexorg CEO Zvonimir Vrselja about groundbreaking research using donated human brains to study Alzheimer’s, Parkinson’s, and other neurological diseases. Using a specialized perfusion system that circulates an artificial oxygen-carrying fluid, scientists can restore cellular function in brain tissue hours after death, including glucose metabolism, molecular signaling, and blood vessel responses. These brains are not conscious and show no electrical activity, but their cells remain metabolically active, creating a new tool for neuroscience research. The breakthrough builds on a landmark 2019 Nature study using pig brains, which showed that brain cell death is a gradual process, not an instant event, opening a new window for scientific discovery. Why does this matter? Nearly 95 to 99 percent of drugs for Alzheimer’s, Parkinson’s, and other brain diseases fail in clinical trials. By studying real human brain tissue outside the body, without neural firing or awareness, Bexorg’s platform allows scientists to test whether drugs actually enter the brain, engage their intended targets, and avoid toxicity before they reach patients. The goal is safer trials, more effective therapies, and faster progress against devastating neurological disorders. Could this approach help close the gap between lab research and real-world treatments? #Neuroscience #LifeScience #Alzheimers #Parkinsons #Research #Science The Big Question Podcast with the Museum of Science:    • The Big Question   The Big Question with the Museum of Science:    • The Big Question   Life Science with the Museum of Science:    • Life on Earth Is a Microbiome   Chapters: 00:00 What Happens After the Heart Stops? 01:12 Meet Bexorg and BrainEx Technology 03:45 How Perfused Human Brains Work 07:10 The 2019 Nature Breakthrough Explained 10:32 Why Brain Cells Don’t Die Instantly 14:55 Testing Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s Drugs 18:40 Why 95% of Brain Drugs Fail 22:15 How This Platform Makes Trials Safer 26:48 Can These Brains Become Conscious? 30:35 The Ethics of Using Donated Brains 35:10 Where Do the Donated Brains Come From? 40:22 Artificial Blood and Oxygen Delivery 45:18 The Future of Brain Disease Treatment Insoo Hyun is an affiliate of the Center for Bioethics at Harvard Medical School and Director of the Center for Life Sciences and Public Learning at the Boston Museum of Science. Joined by Paul Allen, founder of Soar AI and co-founder of Ancestry.com, the conversation explores how strengths-based science, ethical technology, and personal data ownership can reshape our understanding of human flourishing and what it means to build a purposeful, well-lived life in a rapidly evolving world. Zvonimir Vrselja, MD, PhD, is CEO of Bexorg, a techbio company advancing CNS drug discovery using perfused postmortem human brains. He co-invented BrainEx at Yale, the first system to restore cellular and molecular activity in the brain after death, published in Nature. At Bexorg, he leads development of the XO Digital platform, integrating human brain data and AI to accelerate target discovery and therapeutic development. Dr. Vrselja earned his MD and PhD in Croatia and has been recognized as a Schmidt Futures Innovation Fellow and finalist for the Eppendorf & Science Prize for Neurobiology. Among the world's largest science centers, the Museum of Science engages millions of people each year to the wonders of science and technology through interactive exhibitions, digital programs, giant screen productions, and preK – 12 EiE® STEM curricula through the William and Charlotte Bloomberg Science Education Center. Established in 1830, the Museum is home to such iconic experiences as the Theater of Electricity, the Charles Hayden Planetarium, and the Mugar Omni Theater. Around the world, the Museum is known for digital experiences such as Mission: Mars on Roblox, and traveling exhibitions such as the Science Behind Pixar. Learn more at https://www.mos.org/ Copyright © 2025. Museum of Science. All rights reserved. This video is owned by the Museum of Science and may not be reproduced, redistributed, or used in any manner without prior written permission from the Museum of Science.