JAKARTA - Japanese researchers are developing research that sounds unusual, namely the possibility that humans can breathe through the anus. Although it sounds like a joke, this research actually comes from a serious medical need, saving patients who experience oxygen deficiency when the lungs no longer work optimally.
This research was led by Dr. Takanori Takebe, a doctor and stem cell biologist working at the Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center, United States, as well as Osaka University, Japan. His interest in alternative breathing methods came from personal experience when his father suffered from severe pneumonia and had to be put on a ventilator.
"I was really surprised to see how invasive the ventilator procedure was," Takebe said, quoted from the Science News website.
"At that time I thought, is there any other way to put oxygen into the body without involving the lungs?" he continued.
This idea started when Takebe found references about some animals that are able to absorb oxygen through parts of the body other than the lungs. For example, a freshwater fish called loach can swallow air and absorb oxygen through its digestive tract when living in oxygen-poor waters.
"In nature, many organisms breathe in unusual ways. That made us ask, why is it impossible to apply a similar concept to humans?" explained Takebe.
As a doctor with a background in gastroenterology, Takebe knows that the human intestine is rich in blood vessels. This fact has been used in administering drugs through enemas. From there, the hypothesis that oxygen may be absorbed through the digestive tract arises.
The research team then developed a method in the form of an enema using a liquid called perfluorodecalin. This liquid is able to bind large amounts of oxygen and gradually release it into the bloodstream, while absorbing carbon dioxide.
In experiments on mice and pigs, this method has been shown to be able to increase blood oxygen levels and help animals survive in hypoxic or oxygen-deficient conditions.
"I still remember seeing the color of the pig's blood change from dark red to bright red. That was the moment I realized, this crazy idea might actually work," Takebe said.
The results of the study were published in the scientific journal Med and even led his team to win the 2024 Ig Nobel Prize, a science award for research that seems strange but triggers serious thinking.
The next step is to test the safety of this method in humans. A total of 27 healthy men in Japan received perfluorodecalin without oxygen through the anus with varying doses.
Some participants who received the large dose experienced abdominal pain, but the majority only felt mild bloating.
"In general, this method can be tolerated quite well. This is a first step before testing the liquid version containing oxygen," the research team wrote in their report.
Despite attracting the world's attention, this research is not immune from criticism. John Laffey, a respiratory disorder expert from the University of Galway, Ireland, assessed that this approach is difficult to implement practically.
"The lungs, even those that are damaged, are still much more efficient in gas exchange than other organs. The human oxygen requirement is too large to be met by this method," he said.
However, Dr. Kevin Gibbs, a pulmonary doctor from Wake Forest University sees limited potential use in emergency situations.
"If this method can provide additional oxygen temporarily, for example when the doctor is installing a ventilator, the impact can be very large," said Gibbs.
Takebe stressed that his research was not intended to replace the function of the lungs, but rather as an additional solution in certain conditions.
"Maybe this can be used in emergency situations, when transferring patients or when ventilators are not available," he explained.
"It will still take years and further clinical trials before it can be widely implemented," he continued.
When asked his father's opinion of the study, Takebe smiled.
"My father is happy and always jokes about wanting to volunteer. The support is very meaningful, although of course it is impossible to do." he added.
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