As part of a study, American researchers recently experimented with the injection of oxygen bubbles into the rectum of pigs whose lungs had suffered damage . The goal? Discover an alternative solution to the current placement of human patients on respiratory assistance.
In 2019, researchers had created two pig-monkey hybrids, thus flirting with thelimits of ethics . However, pigs are sometimes the subject of less disturbing research although quite eccentric as related by a pre-publication on the BioRxiv platform of December 9, 2021 relating to this work carried out in collaboration with doctors by the company Respirogen based in the state of Colorado (United States). Pigs whose lungs had been damaged by smoke were injected into the rectum with billions of tiny bubbles of oxygen . The results then showed an increase in blood oxygen levels and a decrease in carbon dioxide levels.
Respirogen now wants to perfect and market this technique. Its managers believe that it is an interesting transitional technique for increasing the oxygen saturation of patients. Thus, placement on respiratory assistance could be avoided. You should also know that the tests on the pigs lasted only a few hours. Nevertheless, the researchers believe that the technique could work for long periods of time.
In order to proceed with the injection, the oxygen is stored in micrometric fat bubbles . These were developed in the 1990s by Mark Borden (also a member of the team) to improve ultrasounds. These bubbles allow here to increase the surface, and therefore the passage of oxygen into the blood through the colon. The performance would thus be much greater than the use of pure oxygen in the gaseous state.
A dozen pigs with a mass of 40-50 kg took part in these first tests. After a drop in the oxygen saturation in their blood of up to 66% following exposure to smoke, this same saturation had risen to81% two and a half hours after the injection . At the same time, the observation of a drop in carbon dioxide levels is good news for researchers. Indeed, this gas causes a decline in mental state.
Finally, despite Respirogen's ambitions, this research should be considered with caution . Indeed, the work in question is for the time being simply the subject of a pre-publication and must therefore still be verified by peers. The scientists further communicated their desire to test their technique on humans in order to have it validated.
