Pig Liver Keeps Man Alive
In a medical breakthrough, a genetically modified pig liver kept a man alive for over a week by filtering his blood outside his body until a human organ became available for transplant. This xenotransplant milestone offers hope for solving organ shortages — the pig organ successfully bridged the gap in the world's first case of its kind.
This procedure is part of a broader push into xenotransplantation, the process of transplanting organs or tissues between different species. For decades, these attempts have been thwarted by the human immune system's immediate and aggressive rejection of animal organs. To overcome this, the pig livers used in recent experiments have undergone extensive genetic modification. Using CRISPR technology, scientists can "edit" the pig's genome to remove genes that trigger rejection and add human genes to make the organs more compatible with our bodies. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration has given the green light for a clinical trial to test these genetically modified pig livers as a temporary, external "dialysis-like" treatment for patients with liver failure. The goal is to give the patient's own liver a chance to rest and potentially regenerate, or to act as a bridge to a human transplant. This trial is expected to enroll up to 20 patients who are not eligible for a traditional transplant. This external filtering method follows experiments where pig livers were successfully connected to and filtered the blood of brain-dead human donors for up to 72 hours without any signs of rejection. The biotechnology company eGenesis is a key player, providing the genetically engineered pigs for these studies. Globally, the demand for organs far outstrips the supply. In the United States alone, over 100,000 people are on the national transplant waiting list. About 10,000 of those are waiting for a liver. In a separate groundbreaking surgery in China, a 71-year-old man with liver cancer received an internal transplant of a genetically modified pig liver. The organ functioned for a month before it had to be removed due to complications, and the patient later passed away. While the external liver perfusion represents a significant step, the liver's complexity makes it a more challenging organ for xenotransplantation than kidneys or hearts. It performs a wide range of critical functions, including filtering blood, producing bile, and creating essential proteins. These recent advancements build upon earlier milestones in xenotransplantation, including the successful transplantation of pig kidneys into living human recipients. While challenges remain, these successes offer a glimmer of hope for the thousands of patients who die each year waiting for an organ.
