'Hibernation-on-demand' Drug Significantly Improves Survival After Extreme Blood Loss

For the first time, researchers have demonstrated that the administration of minute amounts of inhaled or intravenous hydrogen sulfide -- the molecule that gives rotten eggs their sulfurous stench -- significantly improves survival from extreme blood loss in rats. The researchers successfully used hydrogen sulfide to induce a state of reversible metabolic hibernation as a way to reduce death from insufficient blood supply to organs and tissues in a rat model of lethal hemorrhage.