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Hannibal Lecter's aquarium   (+6)  [vote for, against]
Don't ask where the stock comes from

Take a fairly thin layer of plasma. Remove the clotting factors. Warm it to a temperature somewhat below that of a healthy human body. Aerate it with an aquarium pump connected to an oxygen cylinder. Meanwhile, culture human, tissue in a Petri dish, including cardiac muscle cells, including a Bundle of His and the rest of the cardiac conduction system, but very thin, until you have a disc of cardiac muscle, and i'm talking really wafer-thin here.
Carefully transfer this pulsating disc into the plasma. It will survive on the solutes in the plasma, including oxygen, though obviously that will need replenishing, and will swim through the water like a jellyfish.
In the meantime, grow fronds of HeLa cells for the bottom of the aquarium to resemble seaweed or bryozoa, and culture other cells which can survive in relatively harsh conditions for the human body, such as hyaline cartilage, fibroblasts and corneal epithelium, moulding various simple "organisms" from them. Sponges which use ciliated respiratory epithelium, worms and salp-like plankton based on corneal epithelium and so on. All one cell layer thick to allow nutrition and diffusion of respiratory gases, fed by "fish food" flakes consisting of amino acids, minerals, vitamins and lipids, all in a sterile environment, connected to oxygen tanks and a dialysis machine. An aquarium made up entirely of human tissue. Good defence when they find what's left of the bodies too. "It's not murder - they're still alive."
-- nineteenthly, Nov 19 2008

Isn't this how the Daleks got started ? [+]
-- 8th of 7, Nov 19 2008


Well, that's another reason to recommend it. I like the idea of various organisms sitting in tubes like in Davros' lab.
-- nineteenthly, Nov 19 2008


I can imagine Anthony Hopkins staring at this in pleasure for hours at end already. Maybe enjoying it with a bottle of Chianti.
-- Germanicus, Nov 19 2008


And fava beans ?
-- 8th of 7, Nov 19 2008


Thith ith tho growth. (+)
-- 2 fries shy of a happy meal, Nov 20 2008


//grow fronds of HeLa cells //

Everything will get taken over by them.
-- neelandan, Nov 20 2008


True. OK, so there's an outer chamber with them and the other stuff's in the middle.
-- nineteenthly, Nov 20 2008



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