X-Message-Number: 8317 Date: Fri, 13 Jun 1997 20:48:53 -0400 From: Paul Wakfer <> Subject: Re: review of suspended animation prospects (Msg #8314) Subtitle: Cryovita Laboratories is Dissolved. I have a correction to Brian's message concerning the development of suspended animation via hypothermia. While I did not think it fruitful to post this correction to sci.cryonics, I believe that here, on CryoNet, the historical record should be kept accurate. While making the correction and in order to put it into a context where it could be understood (and because there always seems to be so much confusion above which companies in Rancho Cucamonga are doing what), I thought that it might be beneficial to give more historical detail. I have tried my best to do this in as objective and value free manner as possible. Brian wrote: >This record [for canine bloodless perfusion] was subsequently extended at 21st Century >Medicine to about 5 hours. The motive of this work was exactly what you suggest: >Improving the reversibility of the early stages of human cryopreservation. In actuality, the survival record of 5 hours 20 minutes of bloodless perfusion was achieved by Cryovita Laboratories, when I was President and Mike Darwin was Research Director. This research occured before 21st Century Medicine existed and its success was partly responsible for the formation of 21CM. The work was funded mainly by myself, with the addition of some money which remained in Cryovita's research fund when I took over its leadership, and with much equipment purchased by Mike Darwin from money which he obtained from a key man insurance policy on Jerry Leaf (this equipment is now owned by BioPreservation, Inc.). 21CM was formed to continue the above 0'C, medically oriented, research with the purpose of relating cryonics-oriented research to more mainstream medical goals and researchers. Cryovita Laboratories was to concentrate on the below 0'C (cryopreservation) research, something that had been the goal and desire of Jerry Leaf. Part of this restructuring decision was the exchange, by Cryovita, of its above 0'C research intellectual assets for a large shareholder position (and a large receivable for contract research completed) from 21CM. These decisions were made and implemented in the spring of 1993 well before the formation of CryoCare Foundation, CryoSpan, Inc. and the incorporation of BioPreservation, Inc. When the new facility in Rancho Cucamonga was purchased by the newly founded 21CM (again made possible both logisticly and monetarily by myself), Mike Darwin also became research director of 21CM, and Cryovita Laboratories became a tenant of the facility. Immediately thereafter, CryoCare Foundation was founded, and BioPreservation and CryoSpan were incorporated to be cryopreservation and long-term care service providers, respectively, for CryoCare, and also became tenants of 21CM. During the first year of 21CM's existence, after funding from its poorly received prospectus ran out, I continued to fund its existance and research (on a loan basis, since I was severely eroding my meager assets). Finally, toward the end of the summer of 1994, Saul Kent and Bill Faloon of the Life Extension Foundation (having survived the worst of their crises brought on by the FDA assault on the Foundation), were able to begin funding the existence and research work of 21CM. As the FDA threat to LEF has dissipated (completely, as of February 1996) and as LEF has enlarged their business, Saul and Bill have been able to more strongly fund 21CM. Personally, I was fortunate that my "loans" were not lost, but were honored and became a promissory note at a reasonable interest rate with a monthly payment. Since the above restructing decision in the spring of 1993, for various reasons, Cryovita has not been able to carry out its mandate for cryopreservation research. Instead, some research relating to assessing the damage done by (then) current human cryopreservation methods was done by BioPreservation and 21CM. (It has always been confusing, even to those involved, what company was doing this work since it was lead by Mike Darwin who was both owner of BioPreservation - which owned much of the equipment used - and was research director of 21CM, since it also used equipment owned by Cryovita Laboratories and by 21CM - and even sometimes by CryoSpan, and since it was funded by both BPI and by 21CM, all this in a totally mixed up impossible to account for manner). Finally last year, it was decided to expand 21CM and build a second research team (headed by Brian Wowk after August 1997) to concentrate on research aimed at reducing the damage done during human cryopreservations. At the same time it was decided to exchange all of Cryovita's remaining assets for shares in 21CM and to dissolve Cryovita. This dissolution has now been completed and all former shareholders of Cryovita Laboratories have become shareholders of 21CM (at a rate of six 21CM shares for each Cryovita share). Personally, I am saddened at the demise of Jerry Leaf's company Cryovita Laboratories, which he began in 1978 and was, for so many years, at the forefront of leading-edge cryonics technology. There is no question but that I feel a sense of failure at not being able to renew Cryovita as the vehicle for advance human cryopreservation research leading to long-term suspended animation. In my view, that "saving grace" of this failure is the growth and exciting research potential of 21CM, and the beginning and continuation of the revolutionary purposes of the Prometheus Project. When and if Jerry Leaf is restored to life some 100 plus years from now, I hope that he will not be dissatisfied that his efforts with Cryovita Laboratories were clearly one of the effective causes of the implementation of long-term perfected suspended animation as an elective medical option in the year 2020. -- Paul -- Paul Wakfer email: Voice/Fax:909-481-9620 Page:800-805-2870 HELP TO ACHIEVE - PERFECTED SUSPENDED ANIMATION WITHIN 20 YEARS! Check out the Prometheus Project web site at URL: http://www.prometheus-project.org/prometheus/ Rate This Message: http://www.cryonet.org/cgi-bin/rate.cgi?msg=8317