How pig kidneys help save lives

Robert Montgomery, MD, H. LeonPachter, MD, Professor of Surgery, Chair of the Surgical Division of NYU Langone, and Director of the NYU Langone Transplant Institute led the surgical team during the two-hour operation.

Throughout the period of transplantation and observation, the researchers did not detect any signs of refusal. This represents a major milestone towards the use of animal organs to help human patients.

“This study provides new hope for an unlimited supply of organs, potential game changers in the field of transplantation, and those who are currently dying for organs,” said Montgomery. statement..

according to Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC)One day, about 75,000 people are waiting for their organs. However, it is only available to about 8,000 dead organ donors each year.

“In the United States, the need for organs is dire.” Luis Tepperman, MD, Vice-Chairman of Surgery, and Director of the Northwell Health Transplant Center in Manhasset, NY, told Healthline.

Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA) Numbers Every 9 minutes someone is added to the waiting list for transplantation, indicating that 17 people are dying waiting for their organs every day.

Experiments with animal organs to help heal people are very long historyBegins with blood transfusions from various animals to 17 year olds^NS Attempt to use frog skin for skin grafting in the centuries and 19 years^NS..

Pigs were used for the first corneal transplant in 1838. This was 65 years before the first transplant in 1905 using an artificial organ.

By the 1960s, doctors were using chimpanzee and baboon organs instead of human kidneys. However, none of these procedures have led to long-term success.

“Despite the similarities of non-human primate and porcine organs to humans, genetic differences have consistently resulted in immediate organ rejection by the human immune system in previous transplant experiments,” he said. rice field. Valerie Balta, MD, Nephrologist at Lenox Hill Hospital, New York.

According to NYU Langone, doctors used pig kidneys manufactured by a regenerative medicine company. Reviver..

A human gene was added to pigs to produce a protein called CD46 that relaxes the immune system. In addition, a sugar-producing gene called α-gal (the cause of rapid rejection of pig organs by humans) was “knocked out” in donor pigs.

“The latest porcine transplants have been genetically modified to trick the immune system into thinking of the graft as human,” said Teperman. “Without graft changes, hyperacute rejection with immediate graft loss can occur.”

Known as GalSafe Pig, it was approved by FDA As a potential source of information on human remedies in December 2020.

The researchers attached the kidneys to blood vessels outside the abdomen of the upper limbs and covered the organs with a protective shield over a 54-hour study period.

They observed that important indicators of properly functioning kidneys were normal and comparable to those of human kidney transplants.

“I think this is another step in the long staircase to reach the ultimate goal of xenotransplantation,” says Teperman. He added that no rejection occurred, but the risk of infection remains unknown.

“Long-term data will eventually be available,” Teperman said.

According to Barta, a few more years of research and experimentation are needed before relying on pig kidneys to solve organ deficiencies, followed by clinical trials.

“So far,” she said. “One of the important ways we can all help is to register as an organ donor.

Surgeons in the United States have succeeded in transplanting porcine kidneys into humans with breakthrough advances that could ultimately help the shortage of organ donors.

Experts say much more research is needed before this outcome can help resolve an ongoing organ shortage. They add that until this happens, the best way we can help is to register as an organ donor.