Pigs could become suppliers of organs for transplants: kidney, heart, lung, etc.
- The genetic modification is necessary because human antibodies attack sugars present on all pig cells.
- The results of this experiment have not yet been published in a medical journal.
- A similar transplant had already been performed between a pig and a primate.
What if the pig became man’s best friend? It could eventually be an organ supplier for transplants around the world. A first experiment was conducted at NYU Langone Hospital in New York: a pig kidney was connected to the body of a brain-dead human and it worked. The story of this world premiere is told in the New York Times.
An external transplant
The pig was genetically modified so that the kidney would not be rejected during the transplant. This was not internal but external: the kidney was connected to the patient’s blood vessels, but not implanted inside his body. The operation was performed on September 25 and lasted about two hours. During the two and a half days of the experiment, the kidney functioned correctly: it produced urine and the creatinine levels were normal. “It was better than anything we could imaginesaid Dr. Montgomery, the director of the transplant institute at NYU Langone Hospital in New York Times. It looked like the results of a transplant from a living donor.“When transplants are done with the kidneys of deceased people, it can take several days or even weeks for the organ to regain functionality. In the case of the pig kidney, it worked immediately. So far, the experiment was short-lived, and researchers aren’t sure if it could have lasted weeks, months, or years, but they hope to start clinical trials in a year or two.
Pigs, future organ suppliers?
In the United States, more than 100,000 people are waiting for a transplant. Each year, twelve people die, for lack of having received the organ necessary for their survival. In the case of the kidney, some people are dependent on dialysis to stay alive because their cases are not eligible for transplantation. The experiment carried out in New York opens the way to a new possibility: the use of pigs as organ suppliers. Dr. Montgomery believes that it could be a source “sustainable and renewable” of organs, if they are genetically modified to be tolerated by the body. Today, pigs are already used in surgery: their heart valves are used in heart operations and their skin in the case of severe burns. But given the short duration of the experiment, some scientists call for caution, such as David Klassen, chief medical officer at the United Network for Organ Sharing, the association in charge of the organ donation network in the United States. . “It’s a complicated area. he reminds and to imagine that we know all the things that are going to happen and all the problems that are going to arise is naive.”
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