Researchers in China have achieved notable progress in the field of organ transplants from animals to humans. Recently, a significant milestone was reached with a successful kidney transplant from a genetically modified pig, and there are indications that pig livers may also be viable for future transplants.
This patient in China is now the third person globally to benefit from a pig kidney transplant. In addition, the same research team reported an experiment involving the transplantation of a pig liver into a patient who was declared brain dead.
To combat the persistent shortage of organ donations, scientists are genetically modifying pigs to produce organs that closely resemble human organs. Earlier attempts at xenotransplantation in the United States, which included pig hearts and kidneys, faced difficulties, but recent cases have shown promising results. For instance, two additional kidney recipients, one in Alabama and another in New Hampshire, are reportedly doing well after their procedures.
Dr. Lin Wang from the Xijing Hospital, affiliated with the Fourth Military Medical University in Xi’an, shared that almost three weeks post-surgery, the Chinese patient is in good health, and the transplanted pig kidney is functioning effectively. Reports indicate that this patient is a 69-year-old woman who has suffered from kidney failure for the past eight years.
Dr. Wang also mentioned a potential future step in xenotransplantation: the successful transplanting of pig livers. According to findings published in the journal Nature, a pig liver transplanted into a brain-dead individual survived for ten days without signs of rejection, producing bile and albumin, which are essential for its basic functions—even if it doesn’t perform as efficiently as a human liver.
The liver poses unique challenges due to its complex tasks, including filtering waste, breaking down nutrients, combating infections, storing iron, and regulating blood clotting. Dr. Wang expressed optimism that the functionality demonstrated by the pig liver might be sufficient to support a human liver in failure.
In a noteworthy attempt last year, surgeons at the University of Pennsylvania connected a pig liver externally to a brain-dead patient to serve as a temporary support, akin to dialysis for failing kidneys. The U.S. company eGenesis is exploring this kind of support system.
In this Chinese experiment, the team did not remove the patient’s own liver but rather placed the pig liver nearby, which might cloud the results. Dr. Parsia Vagefi, a liver transplant surgeon from the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center, stated that while this may be a first step, it raises as many questions as it answers.
Looking ahead, Dr. Wang noted that his team is also studying the outcome of a procedure where they replaced a brain-dead individual’s liver with a pig liver, with results still pending. Reports surfaced that another hospital in China transplanted a pig liver into a living patient who had part of their cancerous liver removed, although the results of that operation remain unclear.
As this line of research develops, it opens up extensive discussions on the future of organ transplants and the implications of using animal organs for human use.
