Scientists Seek to Make Pig Livers to Function in Humans

Scientists Seek to Make Pig Livers to Function in Humans

American scientists are seeking to make pig livers behave more like human livers so they can be transplanted into people. The reengineered livers could help fill a big need for replacement¹ organs.

The first step for scientists is to wash away the pig cells that help the organ do its work. This leaves the liver white and clear, with no blood vessels² remaining in the tissue. Next, human liver cells are added to the empty pig liver. The living cells move throughout the organ in an effort to restart the liver's functions.

Jeff Ross is head of the U.S.-based Miromatrix, the medical company involved in the research. He told The Associated Press, "Because we remove all the cells from that pig organ ... our bodies don't see it as a pig organ." He explained that the process can nearly "regrow the organ."

Ross said the company aims to begin its first human testing sometime in 2023. The goal of the testing will be to try to prove that the method can create functioning human livers.

If the U.S. Food and Drug Administration approves the testing, the first experiment will take place outside a patient's body. A pig-turned-human-like liver will be put next to a patient to temporarily filter the blood of someone whose liver had failed.

Experts say if the "liver assist" experiment works, it would mark a major step forward in developing genetically³ engineered organs that could be transplanted into humans.

Dr. Sander Florman is the head of transplant operations at New York's Mount Sinai Hospital. He told the AP the reengineering of animal organs for humans might sound like something only seen in science fiction.

Florman said that he thinks the "liver assist" method is likely to be used to help patients without the need to implant⁴ a full organ into their bodies. He said such a system can help save the lives of people suffering from organ failure.

More than 105,000 people are currently on the U.S. waiting list for an organ transplant. Thousands of them will likely die before they get a chance to receive a new liver. Thousands more never even get put on the list because they are not considered the best candidates.

"The number of organs we have available are never going to be able to meet the demand," Dr. Amit Tevar told the AP. He is a transplant surgeon at the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center.

Tevar, who is not involved in Miromatrix's research, said he thinks the planned outside-the-body testing would be an early first step in the development of animal organs for human use.

In 2021, researchers with Miromatrix and the Minnesota-based Mayo Clinic reported successfully transplanting a version of bioengineered livers into pigs.

In Maryland, a man lived for two months after receiving the world's first heart transplant from a pig in January 2022. To reduce the chance the man's body would reject the heart, scientists removed several genes⁵ from the donor⁶ pig that are linked to organ rejection⁷.

The FDA is currently considering whether to approve additional transplant experiments that would permit kidneys or hearts from gene-edited pigs to be placed into humans.

The bioengineering process, however, is very different. It does not require organs from genetically engineered pigs. It only requires leftover⁸ organs from slaughterhouses – places where animals are killed for food.

Words in This Story

transplant – n. to perform a medical operation in which an organ or other part that has been removed from the body of one person is put into the body of another person

function – v. to work or operate

filter – v. to pass a liquid or gas through a piece of equipment in order to remove solid pieces of other substances

 

edit – v. to change or correct something

1 replacement   

n.取代，替换，交换；替代品，代用品

参考例句：

• We are hard put to find a replacement for our assistant.我们很难找到一个人来代替我们的助手。
• They put all the students through the replacement examination.他们让所有的学生参加分班考试。

2 vessels   

n.血管( vessel的名词复数 )；船；容器；（具有特殊品质或接受特殊品质的）人

参考例句：

• The river is navigable by vessels of up to 90 tons. 90 吨以下的船只可以从这条河通过。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• All modern vessels of any size are fitted with radar installations. 所有现代化船只都有雷达装置。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》

3 genetically   

adv.遗传上

参考例句：

• All the bees in the colony are genetically related. 同一群体的蜜蜂都有亲缘关系。
• Genetically modified foods have already arrived on American dinner tables. 经基因改造加工过的食物已端上了美国人的餐桌。 来自英汉非文学 - 生命科学 - 基因与食物

4 implant   

vt.注入，植入，灌输

参考例句：

• A good teacher should implant high ideals in children.好教师应该把高尚理想灌输给孩子们。
• The operation to implant the artificial heart took two hours.人工心脏植入手术花费了两小时。

5 genes   

n.基因( gene的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• You have good genes from your parents, so you should live a long time. 你从父母那儿获得优良的基因，所以能够活得很长。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Differences will help to reveal the functions of the genes. 它们间的差异将会帮助我们揭开基因多种功能。 来自英汉非文学 - 生命科学 - 生物技术的世纪

6 donor   

n.捐献者；赠送人；(组织、器官等的)供体

参考例句：

• In these cases,the recipient usually takes care of the donor afterwards.在这类情况下，接受捐献者以后通常会照顾捐赠者。
• The Doctor transplanted the donor's heart to Mike's chest cavity.医生将捐赠者的心脏移植进麦克的胸腔。

7 rejection   

n.拒绝，被拒，抛弃，被弃

参考例句：

• He decided not to approach her for fear of rejection.他因怕遭拒绝决定不再去找她。
• The rejection plunged her into the dark depths of despair.遭到拒绝使她陷入了绝望的深渊。

8 leftover   

n.剩货，残留物，剩饭；adj.残余的

参考例句：

• These narrow roads are a leftover from the days of horse-drawn carriages.这些小道是从马车时代沿用下来的。
• Wonder if that bakery lets us take leftover home.不知道那家糕饼店会不会让我们把卖剩的带回家。