X-Message-Number: 24518
Date: Mon, 16 Aug 2004 09:12:20 -0400
From: Thomas Donaldson <>
Subject: comments for Coetzee, Plus, and Smith

FOR several writers in the latest Cryonet messages:

For Coetzee:
       
First of all, freezing of semen bears little relation to freezing of
brains. The consistent problem with cryopreservation is that of
successfully freezing AND REVIVING large organs. If you don't believe
this, then send a message to Greg Fahy (@21cm.com) to verify this.

Second, you have made a claim about the origin of freezing injury
which conflicts with what I know or believe I know about the subject.
I'm not interested in any arguments here; if you think that the problem
is that freezing destabilizes cell membranes, then please send me
the references supporting that theory. "Destabilize" of course may
have a large set of meanings: some might argue that ice crystals,
by moving the membranes too much, act to destabilize them... in short,
stretch them too much so they break. Just HOW does this destabilization
work? I hope we aren't just arguing about words.

For Mark Plus and Randy Smith:
             
It's fine to quote a news story by a journalist who may or then again
may not have much understanding of what's going on. There is, however,
one factor which at least needs to be factored out of any explanation
that various pollutants are causing the increase in brain diseases:
our average age of death has been steadily increasing, and as we
get older we become more subject to brain diseases such as Alzheimer's
and Parkinson's (and many others).

Any such statistic also needs to be looked at for its role in that
increased rate of brain diseases. Does it account for a 5% increase,
a 10% increase, a 50% increase, or what? It seems unlikely to me that
it will account for 100% even of the INCREASE, not to mention the
basic rate of such brain diseases (whatever it may be).

This claim needs much more examination than a simple reference to
an English news story.  And if you really believe (I doubt it, actually)
that such a reference establishes the truth of the claim, then you
would be a very gullible fellow indeed. So give us more information,
please, so that we don't just have to take your word for it.

                And best wishes and long long life for all,

                      Thomas Donaldson

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