In what has been termed as a “potential miracle”, a group of surgeons in the United States successfully attached a pig’s kidney to a human. The surgery was carried out on September 25 in which the kidney of a genetically modified pig was attached to a brain-dead patient who was on a ventilator. In a statement to the news agency AFP, the surgeon who led the experiment called it a “potential miracle”. Although previous research has shown that a pig’s kidney is a viable option in nonhuman primates, this is the first time that such a thing has been tried on a human.
As a part of the two-hour surgery, the surgeons attached the animal’s kidney to the blood vessels on top of one of the patient’s upper legs. This was done so that experts could observe it and take biopsy samples. The surgery was done on September 25, however, the experiment spanned for over two days.
Results Of The Experiment
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"It did what it's supposed to do, which is remove waste and make urine," said Robert Montgomery, a surgeon at New York University (NYU) Langone who led the surgery, AFP reported. After the kidney was attached, it was able to reduce the level of a molecule called creatinine, which is basically a waste product filtered by the organ. This molecule is considered a good indicator of kidney health. Its level was high in the patient prior to the transplant.
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What About The Patient And The Pig?
The patient was brain-dead and was on a ventilator. He was made a part of this experiment following the family’s permission for the advancement of science. As per reports, the patient wanted to be an organ donor, but the family was disappointed after doctors informed them that the organs weren’t suitable for donation. Hence, they saw this experiment as another opportunity for donation. The patient was taken off the ventilator and he died soon after.
Regarding the pig, as you already know it was a genetically engineered animal. A genetic editing procedure was carried out on it to remove a particular sugar, which could have caused organ rejection. This procedure was carried out by the US-based biotech firm Revivicor.
Also read: 9 Signs and Symptoms Of Kidney Disease To Prevent Health Adversities
Is It A Medical Breakthrough?
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Although prior research has shown that pig kidneys might be a viable option for nonhuman primates, this is the first time such a thing has been attempted on a human. If confirmed further, this could be a huge breakthrough in the organ transplant field, especially addressing the issue of organ shortage.
Xenotransplantation, which is the transplantation of cells, tissues, or organs of a non-human animal into a human, has long intrigued researchers. In the 1960s, the kidneys of chimpanzees were transplanted into humans, however, all of them died shortly afterward. In 1984, a baboon’s heart was transplanted into a newborn, who survived for 20 days. Also, pig’s heart valves and pancreas are widely transplanted into humans. Their skin is also used on burn patients.
There are reasons why pigs are widely used in organ transplantations:
- They are easier to raise.
- They mature faster
- Pigs achieve the average adult human size in just 6 months.
What Next?
Although a successful procedure, it is still early to conclude if this can be carried on further. The surgeon who led the team said that the only way to answer this is by conducting a living human trial. Still, he termed it as an “important intermediate step”. The findings will be submitted to a scientific journal, said surgeon Montgomery, and trials might begin in a year or two.
Although it might be considered a medical breakthrough, it raises several ethical questions regarding animal cruelty. “Pigs are not spare parts,” said People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) in a statement. They “should never be used as such just because humans are too self-centered to donate their bodies to patients desperate for organ transplants,” the organisation that works for the animals’ rights added.