Xenotransplantation

Xenotransplantation

Subject :Science and technology

Section: Biotechnology

Context: After decades of failed attempts, last year, University of Maryland surgeons tried to save a dying man with a pig heart — and he survived for two months.

What is Xenotransplantation:

• Xenotransplantation is any procedure that involves the transplantation, implantation, or infusion into a human recipient of either
  • Live cells, tissues, or organs from a nonhuman animal source, or
  • Human body fluids, cells, tissues, or organs that have had ex vivo (outside of the living body) contact with live non-human animal cells, tissues, or organs.

Why Pigs are popular candidates for organ transplantation.

• Pigs are increasingly becoming popular candidates for organ transplantation.
• Pigs offer advantages over primates for organ procurements, because they are easier to raise and achieve adult human size in six months.
• The pig’s anatomical and physiological parameters are similar to that of humans, and the breeding of pigs in farms is widespread and cost-effective.

Process of Xenotransplantation:

Some breakthrough in Xenotransplantation:

• In 2017, Chinese surgeons reportedly transplanted pig cornea to restore sight in a human.
• In 2020, US experts attached a genetically-altered kidney to a brain-dead person.