According to a recent New York Post article, scientists at the Moran Centre at the University of Utah were able to successfully bring eyes back from the dead. The apparent “reversed death” included eyes taken from organ donors five hours after death. The team exposed the eyes to light, and observed the photoreceptor cells in the human macula responding to bright light, colored lights, and dim flashes.
They proved that photosensitive neuron cells in the retina can still respond to light and communicate with each other. Such neurons make up part of the central nervous system, which includes the brain and spinal cord. This suggests that other cells in the central nervous system could be restored in the same way, which could possibly bring back consciousness after brain death.
As one of the authors put it, “This opens up tremendous opportunities for medical treatments for brain and eye disorders, including blindness. In addition, studies such as this at the intersection of life and death, will enable science to explore what happens to the human mind, brain and consciousness after death in a neutral and unbiased manner.”
