http://en.people.cn/n3/2024/0409/c90000-20154525.html

Doctors from a Xi’an hospital performed xenotransplantation surgery on March 25, in which the kidney of a multi-gene-edited pig was transplanted into a brain-dead human. The kidney is still functioning well 13 days later, Beijing-based Science and Technology Daily reported on Monday.

The surgical plan was created and approved by various academic and ethics committees, and carried out strictly in accordance with relevant national regulations. The family of the patient gave consent for the research to contribute to medical advancement.

With the advancement of gene editing technology, pigs as donors have gradually emerged as one of the preferred candidates for human xenotransplantation due to their organ tissue structure, physiological function, and size being akin to human organs, coupled with their distant relation to humans, which can help evade rejection responses. Editing genes of pig cells is a relatively mature technology, and pigs have strong reproductive capabilities and are easy to raise on a large scale. These factors make pigs the best choice for xenotransplantation donors under current technological conditions, Qin explained.

In recent years, with the in-depth development of gene editing technology and immunology, xenotransplantation research has dramatically progressed, and it may become an effective way to solve the organ shortage.