Brain and death: study answers what happens in the organ in the final seconds

One study carried out at Charité University, in Germany, with the participation of the University of Cincinnati, United States, it shed light on one of the most intriguing phenomena in human existence: the final moments of life in the brain.

Using advanced neural monitoring techniques, the team identified previously unknown patterns and processes, revealing an intricate panorama of the seconds before death.

Understanding the last synapses

The study focused on the brain activity of terminally ill patients, revealing that as death approaches, neurons face difficulties in maintaining their charged ions, essential components for the transmission of electrical signals between them.

With the decrease in blood flow and, consequently, due to cerebral oxygenation, synapses between neurons gradually cease, in an attempt by the organ to conserve energy in the face of the inevitable.

Pre-death neural activity opens up new perspectives – Image: Patrick Lewson/Reproduction

Experts have identified a phenomenon called “spreading depression”, a last wave of electrical activity characterized by the sequential deactivation of brain regions.

This process marks the termination of brain activity before complete death, offering valuable insights into the limits and behaviors of the human brain in its final moments.

A surprising possibility

The study findings suggest a window of opportunity for the brain to reset within five minutes of cardiac arrest.

The discovery raises fascinating questions about the nature of consciousness and death, challenging preexisting concepts about the end of human life.

For neurosurgeon Ajmal Zemmar, from Frontiers in Aging Neuroscience, the research reveals that, even when departure is imminent, the brain can revisit significant moments in the individual’s life.

This insight, according to Zemmar, highlights the continuous advancement of neuroscience and its ability to surprise and inspire us.

Furthermore, research carried out by the University of Southampton, in the United Kingdom, suggests that consciousness can persist for a few minutes after clinical death, challenging traditional concepts about what occurs beyond life.

Reports of individuals resuscitated after cardiac arrest provide intriguing clues to a possible continuity of consciousness beyond the threshold of death, shedding new light on one of the greatest enigmas in history. human existence.