The Silent Heartbeat: Resilience in Reptilian Life: Heart Beating After Death…

[kinyonga]

“In reptiles, the heart possesses a degree of autonomous regulation, allowing it to continue beating even after clinical death.”…
https://www.chameleons.info/l/heart-beating-after-death/

 

[Motherlode Chameleon]

“In reptiles, the heart possesses a degree of autonomous regulation, allowing it to continue beating even after clinical death.”…
https://www.chameleons.info/l/heart-beating-after-death/

Woww! That is a crazy anecdote about reptiles. Thanks for sharing.

Best Regards
Jeremy A. Rich

 

[kinyonga]

I thought it was interesting.

 

[MissSkittles]

The video…

 

[nightanole]

"After clinical death, which is characterized by the cessation of blood circulation"

WAT. So its beating but zero bp etc, so its like a human going into A-fib?

 

[DocZ]

"After clinical death, which is characterized by the cessation of blood circulation"

WAT. So it’s beating but zero bp etc, so it’s like a human going into A-fib?

Cool article. I don’t entirely understand
It’s not atrial fibrillation. That just stops normal sinus rhythm (NSR) where their sinoatrial node causes atrial contraction to fill the ventricle in diastole prior to systolic contraction of the ventricle and systemic circulation of blood. So the rhythm is irregular because the intrinsic “pacemaker” of the heart isn’t working and ventricular filling is often impaired

the only way a heart continues to contract without any circulation would be one of two ways. Total coagulation of the circulating blood, so contraction cannot cause circulation due to total obstruction of blood flow, or PEA, pulse less electrical activity. PEA can look very similar to NSR on an EKG, and if you look directly at a beating heart (actually visualize the heart) it appears to be still contracting but it produces no or little systemic circulation. Humans do this too. I don’t know how long a human heart can maintain this, but PEA is still dead. The SA node has some spontaneous activity that allows depolarization and contraction without any outside stimulus from the rest of the body

Days seems like a long time, but animals that can maintain life during torpor may have a stronger drive to keep the heart beating intrinsically to the heart. For keeping humans alive, it requires oxygen. We can keep lungs moving and hearts beating in completely dead people (brain dead). We use mechanical ventilation and blood pressure support medications to make blood go round and round and lungs going up and down in humans all the time prior to their organ donation for transplant

But beating with no circulation is different, it would be interesting to understand the pacemaker physiology in reptiles. I guess I’ll dig up the reptile medicine texts again and read about it more

Thanks @kinyonga

 

[kinyonga]

AI says…”
Yes, a reptile's heart can continue to beat after the brain has ceased activity. This is due to the heart's intrinsic ability to generate electrical impulses, independent of the brain's signals, a function facilitated by specialized cells in the heart.

Here's a more detailed explanation:

• Intrinsic Cardiac Pacemaker:
  Reptilian hearts have specialized muscle cells, similar to the sinoatrial node in mammals, that can initiate and regulate heartbeats independently.
  
  
• Independent Function:
  Unlike mammals where the brain plays a crucial role in regulating heart rate, reptiles can maintain a heartbeat even after brain activity stops.
  
  
• Factors Influencing Duration:
  Factors like temperature and the reptile's overall metabolic state can influence how long the heart continues to beat after clinical death.
  
  
• Clinical Death:
  Clinical death is defined as the cessation of blood circulation and breathing.
  
  
• Euthanasia Considerations:
  In situations involving euthanasia, this phenomenon necessitates using methods beyond simply stopping brain function to ensure a humane and complete cessation of life. ”

I think I read in another article, something about it being special cells in the brain that played a part in the beating after death too…some independent type of cells. Now, of course, I can’t find it.