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Landmark Xenotransplant: Pig Lung Sustains Human for Nine Days, Offering Hope and Raisingโ Complex โQuestions
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A โขgroundbreaking study โฃin china demonstrates the feasibility of pig-to-human lung transplantation, โdespite notable hurdles.
The Experiment
In a first-of-its-kind procedure,โ researchers in China successfully โtransplanted a genetically modifiedโ pig lung into a 39-year-old brain-dead patient. Theโค lung, altered with sixโฃ specific genetic adjustments to mitigate rejection, functioned within the recipient’s body for nine days before โbeing removed. โ This โฃwasn’t about saving a โฃlife in the traditional sense, but about rigorously testing a critical boundary in medicalโฃ science.
The research, detailed in Nature, represents a significant stepโค toward addressing the global organ โshortage. โ The demandโ for transplantable organs far outstrips supply, and xenotransplantation – โthe transplantation โขof living โcells, tissues or organs from oneโ species to another – offers a potential solution.
feasibility, Not Finality
Whileโข the nine-day functionality is encouraging, researchers emphasize that substantial challenges remain.Organ rejection and the risk of cross-species infection are paramount concerns. โ “This study shows that lung โtransplantation from pigs to โpeople is feasible,” the research team stated,โ “although considerable challenges with โregard to organ rejection and infection remain.” Practical โคapplication โof this technologyโข is still years away.
The study โhas also โคdrawn scrutiny. โขCritics point out that the patient’s native right lung continued to function throughoutโค the experiment, making it arduous to definitively assess the โpig lung’s contribution โto overall respiratory support. As aโฃ Harvard surgical professor explained to The New York Times,”They have only โฃproven that a โpig lung can be placed in the humanโ body.”
A ‘Promisingโ Firstโค Step’
Despite the caveats,the researchโข is โbeing hailedโข as “promising” by manny in the medicalโ community. Dr. Stephanie Chang, โคsurgical director of โคthe lung transplantation program at NYU, told Theโ New York Times, “It’s a great first step, butโฃ a lot of work โคstill needs โคto โbe done.” โค The progress of a reliable method โคfor transplanting animal organs into humansโข would be a transformative advancement โคin medicine.
The pursuit of xenotransplantationโ isn’t limited โtoโฃ lungs. Previous research has explored the transplantation of pig kidneysโฃ and hearts. Notably, a 57-year-old American woman โlived forโฃ 47 days with a genetically โขmodified pig โฃheartโค before โsuccumbing to complications last July,โ as reported by RTL News.
Why pigs?
Pigs are currently the preferredโ animal sourceโฃ for xenotransplantation due to several factors. Professor Ian Always of transplant surgery explained toโฃ RTL News that past experiments with chimpanzee and other primate organs faced significant ethical and social objections.Moreover, pigs โoffer a more efficient sourceโ of โฃorgans due to their larger size and faster โขreproductive rate.
