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What are the highlights of the third edition of Biostasis2022?
When you bring together researchers and experts in human cryopreservation, representatives of the world's leading cryonics providers, and longevity enthusiasts, the result can only be sensational. Especially when the meeting place is the recently inaugurated European Biostasis Foundation (EBF) long-term storage facility, the first of its kind in Europe. We at Tomorrow Bio helped organize the conference as EBF's partner in the mission of offering the opportunity of human cryopreservation to anyone who wants it and improving biostasis research. Did you happen to miss the Biostasis2022 Conference or did you attend and want to relive those three days of workshops, talks, networking, and good food? Check out this article.
The new long-term storage facility opened its doors for conference guests around noon. Speakers and experts from the global cryonics industry had the opportunity to meet for the second in-person (and third in total) Biostasis conference.
Of course, this could only begin with a visit to the facility. Our co-founder Dr. Emil Kendziorra led the tour, from the laboratory fully equipped for biostasis research to the underground floor, where people had the chance to check out our first cryogenic storage dewar. In the coming decades and centuries, we expect that major strides will be made in the development of human cryopreservation technology. Who knows, perhaps one day it will be here that an intermediate temperature storage (ITS) dewar, ideal for reducing thermal stress on tissues, will be developed. Or maybe EBF researchers will eventually succeed in warming and reviving a complex organism. Whatever discoveries will be made within these walls, the thrill of the guests was tangible.
Once the tour was over, the guests took a seat in the main hall for workshops. To begin, Dr. Emil Kendziorrra introduced the Tomorrow Fellow program, which we launched in April. This is for all people who want to support the scientific advancement of the Biostasis field but might not be ready to sign up yet.
If you are currently unable to pay the fee as a full-member or you are a cryocrastinators (who want to sign up but keep procrastinating), this program might be for you. In addition to supporting Biostasis research, the 5€ per month invested as a Fellow will be saved for your future. After you become a full member, everything you paid +20% bonus will be deducted from your membership fees.
On top of that, Tomorrow Bio’s Fellow receive a series of exclusive perks. Wanna know more? Check out our website and find out if this program is right for you.
Another important point of the conference concerns local support. As cryonics enthusiasts well know, fast response is the key to high-quality cryopreservation. This is because, when several hours elapse between the legal death of a member and cryonics first aid, the body's cells suffer what is known as ischemic damage. In the brain, this impairment means that some essential information about the subject's personality might get lost. Since we do not know how far future medical technology will develop, we can't know how much the doctors of the future will be able to cure and recover. Therefore, one of the main goals of cryonics organizations today is to avoid ischemia.
Now, most deaths occur in hospitals with some amount of forewarning. In these cases, our standby teams will be on-site to begin the procedure immediately after pronouncement. However, sometimes a cryonics member may die suddenly. In such cases, even if the team is notified and dispatched with the equipment promptly, it could be several hours before they arrive at the patient's location. In these situations, having local teams (that could reach the patient faster than the professional team) trained in cryopreservation first aid could help prevent ischemia.
At Tomorrow Bio, we want to support the emergence and collaboration of local biostasis associations willing to help when needed. We also have cryopreservation first aid kits with everything you need (including a Lucas, respiratory and medication set) available for purchase. Anyone interested, please contact us at: association@tomorrowbiostasis.com
On the second and main day of the conference, guests had the chance to listen to 14 presentations from experts in biostasis, cryobiology, and cryostasis. Attendees, both onsite and online, were informed about the latest events and discoveries. Speakers from all over the world contributed to this day full of projects, ideas, scientific studies, questions and much more.
In this article, we will briefly introduce the topics covered by the experts.
Dr. Emil Kendziorra opened the first round of talks, updating the audience on Tomorrow Bio and the European Biostasis Foundation’s (EBF) progress. As the fastest-growing cryonics provider, lots of work has been done in the past year. To begin with, the long-term preservation facility was completed - participants at last year's conference had the opportunity to visit the building still under construction. Additionally, our emergency notification app is complete and available for download. The app can be used by all cryonics members and it will be an open source project so anyone can help improve it.
The second speaker of the day was Peter Tsolakides, live from Australia. His presentation focused on the developments of Southern Cryonics, the new human cryopreservation provider based in Holbrook, New South Wales, Australia. Slowdowns following the COVID-19 pandemic have postponed its official opening, which will take place in late 2022 or early 2023. Additionally, Peter talked about the SST Australian organization CryoPath and the long term trust CryoPrime.
Third to speak was Michael Benjamin, an American scientist specializing in the fields of space and bioengineering. His presentation was highly anticipated, as he had introduced Alcor’s Meta-Analysis Project at Biostasis2021. This is based on the collection and analysis of a 53-year data set of cases, from 1967 to 2020. One year on, this project is yielding interesting results, which will likely allow us to improve procedures and handling of both ideal and non-ideal cases.
Finishing the first session of presentations was Aschwin de Wolf, Founder and CEO at the neural cryobiology company, Advanced Neural Biosciences (ANB). Taking up from the previous presentation, Aschwin discussed how to improve the field of human preservation. The organization Biostasis Technologies, of which he is president, is working to improve both the field of cryonics research and data collection, which is essential for development but often underestimated.
Opening the second presentation session, after some coffee and networking, was Aaron Drake. He is the former Medical Response Director of Alcor, where he worked from 2009 to 2016, and is now Director of Research and Chief Specialist of the Yinfeng Life Extension Program in Jinan, Shandong, China. His talk revolved around ECMO, or Extracorporeal Membrane Oxygenation. This method, sometimes used in emergency care, allows the blood to be oxygenated outside the body by a heart-lung machine, which also removes carbon dioxide. In this way, oxygenation and pumping does not rely on the organs of the body, which may be malfunctioning - or inactive, in the case of cryonics patients.
The sixth speaker of the day was Dr. Roman Bauer, computational biologist and lecturer at the Department of Computer Science at the University of Surrey. His talk focused on how to rescue the brain from deterioration due to aging, neurodegenerative diseases and other issues such as brain cancer. If and when revival technology is developed, the brain will have to be restored to good health. This means that researchers will have to develop a way to recover all connections, even those lost during the lifespan years before cryopreservation.
Dr. João Pedro de Magalhães followed, live from Liverpool, UK. Pedro is a cryobiology expert with an interest in defeating death by curing aging - which is what he’s currently working on. As the lead of the Genomics of Ageing and Rejuvenation Lab at the University of Birmingham, his research branches to cellular molecular biology (covering cellular reprogramming), drug discovery, studies on long-lived animals and much more. His talk revolves around the question: “Are we actually advancing on curing aging?”
Opening the afternoon of presentations was David Wood, Chair of London Futurists, talking about the future of Biostasis. He pictured a (speculative) situation in which the development of AI would change our world way earlier than we expect. What would that mean for cryonics? What should we do to get prepared for this moment? His analysis covered several points, e.g. calculating the economic probability of some of the essential aspects related to cryonics (allocation of wealth and future cost of cryopreservation plans).
Max Marty, founder of the Discord server The Cryosphere and co-host of the Cryonics Underground podcast followed. For many years, Max has been involved in the creation and development of the cryonics community. At the Biostasis2022 conference, he introduced his project for evaluating the cryonics community: The Great Cryonics Survey 2022. This is based on his discoveries acquired from talking to the community. For example, people interested in cryonics are usually interested in mind uploading and possibly living in some sort of Metaverse after revival.
At this point, Max More, Alcor’s former CEO and current Ambassador and President Emeritus, took the stage. His presentation focused on an economic aspect that is often neglected: inflation and its effect on the cost of a human cryopreservation plan. We expect cryonics to become a more mainstream choice in the future, and this will lower its cost per capita. The growth of inflation in recent years, however, is leading to the reverse (and faster) effect of price growth. What can cryonics organizations and members do to have the necessary funds in the future?
Concluding the third session of the day was Ben Best, former President and CEO of the Cryonics Institute. Based on his study Cryoprotectant Toxicity: Facts, Issues, and Questions [1] published in 2015, the presentation covers the topic of cryoprotectant (CPAs) toxicity in detail. Ben offered suggestions on which mixes could be used to improve the qualities of these agents. Being able to reduce their toxicity will allow us to raise the quality of cryopreservation and possibly simplify future revival.
This brings us to the last three speakers of the day. Dr. Ramon Risco Delgado, founder of SafePreservation, a start-up biotechnological company focused on preserving biological material at cryogenic temperatures. His talk was a continuation of last year’s presentation. Looking at the damage done to cells by the ice crystal formation and advances in vitrification, he analyzed the current difficulties in organ cryopreservation research. He also examined nanowarming, a field of nanotechnology that could someday help us effectively and homogeneously warm complex cryopreserved organs and organisms.
Eric Vogt, co-founder of International Cryomedicine Experts and second to last speaker, talked live from Scottsdale, US. Former firefighter and paramedic for 28 years, Eric has invested his life in helping people. In the last decades, he has participated in over 120 cases and his talk focused on current SST protocols, practices and challenges. To mention one, cases of sudden death during the night pose an unexpected problem as transports such as flights or trains are less frequent.
Live from Fontana, US, Dr. Greg Fahy is the last speaker of the Biostasis2022 edition. CSO at 21st Century Medicine, a cryobiological research company based in California, his talk focused on cryopreservation of the brain. Dr. Fahy analyzed the past, present and future of this research. Several studies have proven that quality cryopreservation can preserve those parts of the brain that contain memory with minimal damage. This could mean that what forms your personality will be preserved and possibly recovered in the future.
After two intense days of workshops and expert presentations, the third day of the conference was dedicated to networking - while enjoying a BBQ and a few beers. All interested persons, from the inhabitants of Rafz to journalists and photographers, were invited to attend. In four tours during the course of the day, Dr. Emil Kendiorra showed the facility to the attendants and explained the objectives of biostasis research. We were pleased that so many people showed up, curious about the event.
The Biostasis2022 Conference was a success. The field of biostasis is progressing, together with the international community. We would like to thank the speakers, the guests on-site and online, and all the staff who made this event possible.
In case you missed the event, join our Discord server to stay tuned for the next edition! In the meantime, why not have a look at our articles on Tomorrow Insight? From human cryopreservation, technology, longevity and futurism, we have plenty of content for all tastes.
See you Tomorrow!
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