Sources consulted

All URLs accessed 2026-04-23 unless otherwise noted.

Nectome and ASC primary sources

• https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.64898/2026.03.04.709724v1 — Song, LaVergne, Wróbel (Nectome, 2026). "Ultrastructural preservation of a whole large mammal brain with a protocol compatible with human physician-assisted death." The preprint that establishes the 14-minute perfusability window. (Landing page reachable, full HTML / PDF returned 403 to this agent; content extracted via secondary reporting and the LessWrong companion post.)
• https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.64898/2026.03.02.708967v1 — Companion Nectome preprint "Aldehyde-based cryopreservation of whole brains."
• https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.64898/2026.01.28.702375v1.full — 2026 preprint on "Ultrastructural and Histological Cryopreservation of Mammalian Brains by Vitrification" (vitrification-only comparator).
• https://www.lesswrong.com/posts/NEFNs4vbNxJPJJgYY/nullius-in-verba-3rd-party-evidence-for-nectome-s-brain — Nectome post (Aurelia Song, 2026-03) with 3rd party evaluation details (Critch / SFF / Berkeley EM).
• https://lifeboat.com/blog/2026/03/ultrastructural-preservation-of-a-whole-large-mammal-brain-with-a-protocol-compatible-with-human-physician-assisted-death — Secondary summary of the preprint.
• https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/26408851/ — McIntyre & Fahy 2015 "Aldehyde-stabilized cryopreservation," Cryobiology (ASC foundational paper).
• http://aurellem.org/ASC/html/ASC-full-protocol.html — Full ASC protocol writeup. (Not reachable in this session.)

Brain Preservation Foundation

• https://www.brainpreservation.org/small-mammal-announcement/ — 2016 small-mammal prize award to ASC.
• https://www.brainpreservation.org/large-mammal-announcement/ — 2018 large-mammal prize award to 21CM/McIntyre.
• https://www.brainpreservation.org/asc_rabbit_fulleval/ — Full evaluation of ASC rabbit, FIB-SEM at 8-16 nm isotropic.
• https://www.brainpreservation.org/wp-content/uploads/2015/08/BrainPreservationTechnologyPrizeRules_Ver1.pdf — BPF prize rules (5 nm EM pixel size requirement).

Cryoprotectants and cryonics operations

• https://www.biostasis.com/vitrification-agents-in-cryonics-m22/ — M22 composition table, 9.345 M total, brain shrinking noted.
• https://www.biostasis.com/vitrification-agents-in-cryonics-vm-1/ — CI-VM-1 (DMSO + ethylene glycol).
• https://cryonics.org/research/ci-vm-1-cryoprotectant-and-ci-carrier-solution-used-for-vitrification/ — Cryonics Institute's own description of VM-1.
• https://cryonics.miraheze.org/wiki/M22 — M22 secondary reference.
• http://www.21cmpublications.com/PubFiles/26/cryopreservation_advances.pdf — 21CM review of cryopreservation / vitrification.
• https://www.cryonicsarchive.org/library/alcor-human-cryopreservation-protocol/ — Alcor protocol; perfusion pressure ≤100 mmHg.
• https://cryonics.org/case-reports/the-cryonics-institutes-75th-patient-by-ben-best — CI case with 120-160 mmHg perfusion pressure.
• https://www.alcor.org/Library/html/CTscan1002.html — Alcor CT scan page.
• https://www.cryonicsarchive.org/library/calibration-of-alcor-post-cryopreservation-ct-scans/ — Calibration of Alcor post-cryo CT (CPA density mapping).
• https://www.emk.bio/2026-at-tomorrow-bio/ — Tomorrow Bio roadmap 2026; EM microsamples introduced as new metric.
• https://www.tomorrow.bio/blog/founder-letter-our-focus-for-2026 — Tomorrow Bio 2026 founder letter.
• https://insight.tomorrow.bio/articles/the-science-behind-cryopreservation-methods — Tomorrow Bio education page.
• https://sparksbrain.org/ourHistory.html — Sparks Brain Preservation history.
• https://oregoncryo.com/cryonicsVsAldehyde.html — Oregon Brain Preservation cost argument (redirects to oregonbp.com).
• https://biostasis.substack.com/p/an-alternative-to-cryonics — Charles Platt overview of aldehyde preservation.
• https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC11416988/ — Andrew T. McKenzie et al., "Structural brain preservation: a potential bridge to future medical technologies" (review with quality/cost/perfusion failure discussion).

Capillary physiology and Poiseuille

• https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK53086/ — "Anatomy and Ultrastructure" (Cipolla, "The Cerebral Circulation"). Confirms ~400 mi total capillary length.
• https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC10503221/ — "Endothelial structure contributes to heterogeneity in brain capillary diameter" (2023). Luminal diameter 2-5 μm; outer diameter 7-9 μm.
• https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/9219216/ — Hudetz 1997, "Blood flow in the cerebral capillary network" (intravital microscopy review).
• https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/8408311/ — Changes in brain capillary diameter during hypocapnia/hypercapnia (mean 4.93 vs 5.91 μm).
• https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1038/jcbfm.2012.5 — Itoh & Suzuki 2012, "Control of Brain Capillary Blood Flow."
• https://cvphysiology.com/hemodynamics/h003 — Poiseuille's equation reference.
• https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hagen%E2%80%93Poiseuille_equation — Hagen-Poiseuille equation.
• https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0896627316304019 — "Erythrocytes are Oxygen-Sensing Regulators of the Cerebral Microcirculation" — RBC deformability.

No-reflow phenomenon

• https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/5635861/ — Ames et al. 1968, "Cerebral ischemia. II. The no-reflow phenomenon" (original paper; full text not directly accessible, abstract via secondary literature).
• https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/835156/ — Little et al. 1977 "Reassessment of cerebral capillary changes..." (questions the extreme collapse-by-swelling model).
• https://journals.physiology.org/doi/full/10.1152/ajpheart.00183.2018 — Kloner 2018, "No-reflow phenomenon in the heart and brain."
• https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC10905637/ — Zhang et al. 2024 "No-reflow phenomenon in acute ischemic stroke" (modern mechanism review).
• https://www.ahajournals.org/doi/10.1161/STROKEAHA.123.044240 — "No-Reflow Post-Recanalization in Acute Ischemic Stroke: Mechanisms, Measurements, and Molecular Markers."
• https://www.cell.com/cell-reports/fulltext/S2211-1247(20)31249-3 — El Amki et al. 2020, "Neutrophils Obstructing Brain Capillaries Are a Major Cause of No-Reflow in Ischemic Stroke." Quantifies 20-30% stall rate.
• https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0889159121000155 — Neutrophil capillary stalls after experimental stroke.

Pericytes and capillary constriction

• https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/24670647/ — Hall et al. 2014, "Capillary pericytes regulate cerebral blood flow in health and disease," Nature (capillaries produce 84% of the activity-induced flow change; pericyte death in rigor).
• https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/0271678X15610340 — Attwell et al. 2016, "What is a pericyte?"
• https://www.jci.org/articles/view/154118 — TMEM16A amplifies pericyte contraction after ischemia.
• https://elifesciences.org/articles/29280 — Capillary pericytes mediate coronary no-reflow (transferable mechanism).

Edema and ICP

• https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC4463627/ — Pathogenesis of brain edema and anti-edema drugs review.
• https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/0271678X15617172 — Stokum, Gerzanich, Simard 2016, "Molecular pathophysiology of cerebral edema."
• https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC9434007/ — "Cerebral edema after ischemic stroke: Pathophysiology."
• https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC9835920/ — "The Monro-Kellie Doctrine: A Review and Call for Revision."
• https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC12142851/ — Monro-Kellie 4.0 (2025).
• https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK542298/ — StatPearls "Intracranial Pressure Monitoring."
• https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK482119/ — StatPearls "Increased Intracranial Pressure."
• https://litfl.com/monro-kellie-doctrine/ — LITFL Monro-Kellie eponym.

Mannitol / hypertonic saline / decompression

• https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC10329884/ — Mannitol optimization review.
• https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC4665128/ — Mannitol vs HTS in TBI review.
• https://www.nature.com/articles/s41598-025-15002-y — Mannitol vs HTS brain relaxation in tumour craniotomy.
• https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC3727970/ — "Effect of Mannitol on Cerebral Blood Volume in Patients with Head Injury" (CBV reduction quantification).
• https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC6355668/ — Decompressive craniectomy timing review.
• https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC4771225/ — Decompressive craniectomy TBI review.

Ischemic cascade / reperfusion injury

• https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ischemic_cascade — Wikipedia overview of cascade and timescales.
• https://em-med.com/blog/the-ischemic-brain-damage-cascade-when-starts-how-long-lasts/ — Cascade timeline summary.
• https://www.nature.com/articles/s41392-022-01064-1 — Qin et al. 2022 (Nature STTT) "Signaling pathways involved in ischemic stroke" — comprehensive review.
• https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC5991620/ — "Ischemia-reperfusion injury in the brain: mechanisms and therapeutic strategies."
• https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/2823355/ — Siesjö 1988 classic "Mechanisms of ischemic cerebral injury."
• https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK534267/ — Mechanisms of Vascular Disease chapter on reperfusion injury.
• https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Reperfusion_injury — Reperfusion injury overview.
• https://www.mdpi.com/1422-0067/27/5/2279 — Calcium overload in ischemic stroke 2026.
• https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s12264-022-00859-0 — "Neuronal Death Mechanisms and Therapeutic Strategy in Ischemic Stroke."
• https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/cellular-neuroscience/articles/10.3389/fncel.2020.00051/full — "Ischemia-Triggered Glutamate Excitotoxicity from the Perspective of Glial Cells."
• https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/pharmacology/articles/10.3389/fphar.2022.1020918/full — Ferroptosis in ischemic stroke.

Cooling / Q10 / hypothermia

• https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Q10_(temperature_coefficient) — Q10 definition.
• https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/8751636/ — Hagerdal et al. / Michenfelder on Q10 for CMRO2 in rats.
• https://thejns.org/view/journals/j-neurosurg/85/3/article-p482.xml — Journal of Neurosurgery 1996 on Q10 for CMRO2.
• https://www.biostasis.com/critical-cooling-rate-to-prevent-ischemic-brain-injury/ — Biostasis calculation: ~2.9 °C/min needed with Q10=2.0.
• https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC2094117/ — "How the body controls brain temperature" — shielding effect of CBF.
• https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/20006417/ — Pig extracorporeal cooling to 30/24/18 °C data.
• https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/7579846/ — CPB temperature management.
• https://www.sts.org/sites/default/files/documents/Guidelines_CPB%20Temperature%20Management.pdf — STS CPB temperature guidelines.
• https://www.nejm.org/doi/full/10.1056/NEJMoa012689 — HACA trial (post-cardiac-arrest mild hypothermia).

Imaging / EM

• https://blog.delmic.com/pushing-the-limits-of-brain-imaging-nanoscale-resolution-connectomes — vEM / nanoscale connectomes.
• https://www.nature.com/articles/s41587-023-01911-8 — Imaging brain tissue architecture across mm-to-nm scales (Lichtman group).
• https://www.nature.com/articles/s41583-025-00998-z — "Synaptic-resolution connectomics: towards large brains."
• https://www.nature.com/articles/s41586-025-08985-1 — "Light-microscopy-based connectomic reconstruction of mammalian brain tissue" (expansion microscopy alternative).
• https://www.nature.com/articles/s41467-020-18422-8 — "Light microscopy based approach for mapping connectivity with molecular specificity" (not reachable; cited via secondary).

Capillary density / length

• https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC10480047/ — "Pericyte control of blood flow across microvascular zones in the CNS."
• https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fphys.2019.00233/full — Brain capillary networks across species.
• https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC8102366/ — Brain capillary pericytes and blood flow.