After operating a genetically engineered pig kidney in a brain-dead human for a record two months, the American scientific team that performed the transplant said Thursday that it had ended the experiment as planned.
“Over the past two months, we have learned a lot through detailed observations and analysis, and we have good reason to be optimistic about the future,” said the institute’s director, Dr. Robert Montgomery. NYU Langone Transplant Center. The hospital in New York where the procedure was performed.
Such transplantation of animal organs into humans, called xenografts, could offer a solution to the chronic shortage of kidney donors. More than 100,000 Americans are currently on the waiting list for an organ transplant, including nearly 88,000 waiting for a kidney.
On July 14, a pig’s kidney was transplanted into the brain of a dead man who had donated his body to science. The pig was genetically modified so that the human body would not immediately reject the organ.
While no signs of rejection were observed after a month, the scientists said on Thursday that a mild rejection process was observed thereafter, requiring an increase in immunosuppressive treatment.
More results will be released in the coming months, NYU Langone said in a release.
This team has performed several xenotransplants in recent years, including the world’s first transplant of a pig kidney into a human in September 2021. However, all the trials so far have been quite short.
This summer’s experiment lasted a total of 61 days, which is a record.
“To create an unlimited supply of organs, we need to learn how to manage organ transplants from pigs to humans,” Dr. Robert Montgomery. “Testing them in deceased patients allows us to optimize the choice of immunosuppressive regimens and gene modifications to make future trials safer.”
Other lawsuits against dead people are planned.
published on September 14 at 23:36, AFP
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