X-Message-Number: 7177
From: 
Date: Wed, 20 Nov 1996 10:56:19 -0500
Subject: SCI. CRYONICS Oden

Chris Benatar (Cryonet #7164) urged vigorous inquiry into the work of Dr.
Oden, mentioned by Doug Skrecky recently, in the '70s, reportedly more than
doubling the life span of rats treated--beginning when already old--with DNA
and RNA in solution with chloroform. Mr. Benatar, who lives in the UK,
offered to help finance such inquiry.

I'm sure many of us feel the same way, but everybody is so busy that we are
reluctant to take on extra chores if we can avoid it. Any chance Mr.Skrecky
could be point man here, or Mr. Benatar? The Immortalist Society and the
Cryonics Institute will help with the costs to any reasonable extent, if
first notified and queried.

If no one else does it, we will do it ourselves, but there will be delay. We
prefer to help with the costs and let someone else do the work. 

One of the first steps in the inquiry might be to find Dr. Oden's
relatives/heirs/associates and try to pry some information out of them.
Others to seek might be editors of the journal in which he published, or
their successors; maybe the journal reviewers were younger than he was and
still alive. Maybe he had young assistants or employees who saw the work.

I haven't yet seen the full paper, although Doug has promised to send me a
copy, so I don't know if enough detail is given to allow good replication of
the work. If there is enough detail, then perhaps replication is justified
even if we can't find anyone who was originally involved. It certainly
doesn't sound very expensive.

"DNA and RNA" sounds like so broad or basic an approach (although very vague
as stated) that possibly it could first be done, more quickly and cheaply,
with fruit flies. 

Robert Ettinger
Immortalist Society
Cryonics Institute


Rate This Message: http://www.cryonet.org/cgi-bin/rate.cgi?msg=7177