Genetically Modified Pig Kidneys Transplanted Into Brain-Dead Person Experiment

Two pig kidneys, genetically engineered to prevent rejection by the immune system, were transplanted into a brain-dead man; during the 77 hours of the experiment carried out in the US, the kidneys were not rejected. The announcement was made yesterday on the 20^th of January 2022, but the experiment was carried out on the 30^th of September 2021 by The University of Alabama at Birmingham Marnix E. Heersink School of Medicine.

The two kidneys used in this transplant came from the same line of genetically modified pigs as the heart that was transplanted into David Bennet on the 7^th of January 2022. The major difference between these two operations is that David Bennet had no other option so resorted to having the pig heart transplant, but the kidney transplant was done as an initial safety test only.

Surgeon Jayme Locke said, “This game-changing moment [is] a major milestone in the field of xenotransplantation, which is arguably the best solution to the organ shortage crisis.” The aim of the study was to pave the way for a clinical trial, which Jayme Locke hopes will get under way this year.

The brain-dead person in question was Jim Parsons, who was injured during a motorcycle race. He was a registered organ donor, but his organs were not suitable for transplantation; his family gave permission for his body to be kept alive on a ventilator so that this study could be done. After his own kidneys had been removed, they were replaced with the genetically engineered pig kidneys.

The ex-wife Julie O’Hara said, “As a family, we had no doubt that this is what Jim would have wanted.”

Below is the study and presentation by The University of Alabama at Birmingham Marnix E. Heersink School of Medicine: