This document summarizes the concept and history of human head transplants (HHT). It discusses past experiments transplanting animal heads that were unsuccessful due to immune rejection issues. The first successful head transplant was in 1970, transplanting a monkey head but the monkey only survived 9 days. The document outlines Italian doctor Sergio Canavero's plan to perform the first human HHT as soon as 2017. It describes the proposed procedure which involves cooling the bodies, reconnecting blood vessels and spinal cords, and placing the recipient in a coma for 4 weeks to heal. Some critics say the project is "pure fantasy" but supporters argue the technology has advanced significantly since the first monkey head transplant over 40 years ago.

1. HUMAN HEAD
TRANPLANT
HARUN YILDIZ

2. Introduction
I. The Concept of Human Head Transplant
II. Human Head Transplant (HHT) History
III. How Will It Be Done?
IV. Benefits of HHT

4. I. First Human Head Transplant

5. Switching heads sounds pretty "Frankenstein," for sure.

6. • It sounds like the plot from a horror movie,
• but scientists believe a human head transplant
could soon become a reality.

7. The man leading the ambitious plan is Italian doctor
Sergio Canavero.
Doctors will launch a project at a conference this
summer. He will carry out the first procedure as soon as
2017.

8. Dog head transplant
• The first produces a two-headed animal. Reportedly, a
number of two-headed dogs were produced. Both heads
could breathe and eat. But the dogs died in less than a
month because of rejection issues with the transplanted
head.

9. Monkey head transplant
• Similar experiments were done in monkeys, but the
monkey’s own head was removed and the donor head
attached, producing a one-headed animal.

10. First head transplant, 1970

11. • For this reason, actually
• The first successful head transplant was carried out in
1970 in US.
• It was moved the head of one monkey on to another.
• The monkey lived for 9 days, but its immune system
rejected the head. But the heads did function.
• But nobody knew how to connect the transplanted
head to the spinal cord.

12. because
• In the HHT, another important topic is spinal
cord. The greatest technical hurdle to such
endeavor is of course the reconnection of the
donor's and recipient's spinal cords.

13. SPINAL CORD:
to conduct motor and sensory information,
to coordinate certain reflexes and central pattern generators

14. He first submited his idea in 2013.
He has some the major obstacles to surgery.
These include making the spinal cord with a new
head, and ensuring the body's immune system
does not reject it.
He believes head transplants could help people
with degenerative muscle disease, widespread
organ failure (total paralysis) and cancer sufferers.

15. • Dr Canavero plans to announce the project at the
annual conference of the American Academy of
Neurological and Orthopaedic Surgeons, US, in
June.
• He published a paper with a theory on how he
believes the operation could be carried out
successfully this month.

16. HOW?

17. Firstly, because their cells can survive without oxygen, the
recipient's head and the donor body are cooled.
Then, tissue around the neck is cut up and major blood
vessels are linked using tiny tubes.
Next, the spinal cords are cleanly seperated, and then the
recipient's head is moved onto the donor body.
Lastly, the ends of the spinal cord are combined using the
chemical polyethylene glycol (PG ise special adhesive).

18. • After this, the person would be put into a coma for around
4 weeks while they heal.
• Dr Canavero believes the person would wake up with the
same voice, move and feel their face and learn to walk
within a year.
• He says several people have already volunteered.

19. • Some critics have critized Dr Canavero's project
'pure fantasy'.
• For Example, Dr. Jerry Silver, Case Western Reserve
University neurologist "It's complete fantasy, that you could use
[PEG technology] in such a traumatic injury in an adult mammal.
This is bad science, this should never happen."
• But it is now more than 40 years since the first
monkey head transplant
• and a similar operation on a mouse was recently
successful in China.

20. Additionally
The operation is expected about $13 million..

21. Thanks for listening..
SOURCES
• http://www.mirror.co.uk/news/technology-science/science/first-human-head-transplant-could-5233587
(headlines of article)
• http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/07/06/head-transplant-italian-neuroscientist_n_3533391.html
(for video)