As humans, we typically look at life and death as two sides of the same coin. However, some researchers believe there could be a “third state” between the two. One piece of evidence for this additional state is the way we continue to use organs, tissues, and cells beyond when the organism they’re attached to dies. Somehow, they continue living.
In a post on The Conversation, researchers behind a new paper break down exactly how they think these biobots exist, and how they were able to take cells and turn them into multicellular organisms with new functions after their death. Despite how it sounds, these aren’t zombie cells. Instead, they appear to be new organisms with an entirely different life to live.
But how exactly does this prove that there is a third state beyond life and death? Well, typically death is viewed as the irreversible end of an organism. At that point, there’s no more functioning for the organism in question. But that isn’t the case here. Instead, the researchers proved that certain cells could live on and be changed into something completely different.
This third state then, challenges everything scientists understand about cell behavior. Because they can turn the already existing cells into new organisms with different purposes, they have started calling them living robots. These organisms could have multiple uses in medical and scientific fields, though researchers are still working to understand exactly how this happens.
There are plenty of examples of organisms transforming or transitioning into something different. However, it is very rare that an organism can change in ways that are not already predetermined. That’s the real difference between this third state of being and the transformations seen in some creatures like butterflies or tadpoles.
Depending on the origin of the living robot, the functions they unlock upon their transformation can vary. For instance, the researchers found that solitary human lung cells can actually self-assemble into new multicellular organisms called anthrobots. These living robots then behave in new ways. They can both navigate the area around them as well as repair themselves and injured neuron cells that are placed nearby.
But there are conditions for how these cells continue living after their host organism’s death. The researchers write that several factors, from how long it has been since the organism died to how active metabolic activity is at the time of death, can greatly affect the birth of this third state of being. Additionally, factors such as health, sex, and age can shape the postmortem landscape, too.
Understanding exactly how this third state comes into play in the wild will require deeper research. For now, though, this new study is at least evidence that there is something out there beyond life and death, at least for certain cells. What that means in the grand scheme of things remains to be seen.
