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A fluid full of oxygen and nutrients was pumped through the animals' hearts, brains, livers and kidneys. The OrganEx system reduced or corrected damage from a lack of oxygen after six hours.

Yale University's Professor Nenad Sestan said: "These cells are functioning hours after they should not be."

Stephen Latham, of Yale, said the technology could theoretically be used to bring someone back to life.

The study was in the journal Nature.

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