A Chinese research team has successfully completed the world's first transplant of a gene-edited pig liver into a brain-dead human, with the organ showing good physiological function, Xinhua reported Wednesday.
Dou Kefeng, an academician at the Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS), led a research team from Xijing Hospital and other institutions in transplanting the liver of a pig with six genetic edits into a brain-dead human whose basic bodily functions were still being maintained. The recipient's own liver was retained to simulate support therapy for patients with clinical liver failure. "We observed that the transplanted gene-edited pig liver can perform physiological functions in the human body, secreting bile normally, with good blood supply and pathological results," Dou Kefeng told Xinhua. No hyperacute rejection or transmission of porcine endogenous retrovirus to humans was detected during the 10-day observation.
