The doctors transplanted the first gene-edited pig kidney into a man on March 16, 2024. Finally, the patient leaves the Massachusetts General Hospital(OMG) after two weeks of medical aid. This pig kidney transplant stands as an exceptional attainment in medical sciences.
There were two cases of pig organ transplantation in the last two years, but in both of these genetically modified organs- hearts did not work in the human body as expected by the surgeons and doctors.
The reason for the first modified heart failure was unknown, while in the second case, the body rejected the engineered pig heart, causing the death of the patient.
Mr. Richard Slayman, 62, of Weymouth, Massachusetts, has become the first recipient of a genetically modified pig organ. His condition is stable now. He has been discharged from the hospital.
We are happy to share that today, Rick Slayman, our first patient to ever receive a genetically edited pig kidney transplant, has been discharged from the hospital. He is recovering well and will continue to recuperate at home with his family. pic.twitter.com/26a9f9T85N
— MassGeneral News (@MassGeneralNews) April 3, 2024
The Director of the Legorreta Center for Clinical Transplant Tolerance, Tatsuo Kawai, shares his feelings about four-hour prolonged and successful surgical procedures:
“The success of this transplant is the culmination of efforts by thousands of scientists and physicians over several decades. We are privileged to have played a significant role in this milestone. Our hope is that this transplant approach will offer a lifeline to millions of patients worldwide who are suffering from kidney failure,”
Richard Rick Slayman has been a patient with End-Stage Kidney Disease(ESKD), which means kidneys cannot meet body requirements anymore, since 2011. He was on dialysis at Harvard Medical School’s teaching hospital, Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH).
His dialysis treatment continued till the availability of a human organ donor in 2018. His first human kidney from a human donor was transplanted at the MGH, Boston. That organ worked well till 2023. The patient has to continue dialysis as the transplanted human kidney started symptoms of delinquency.
The doctors at MGH raised the idea of a porcine kidney transplant, and the patient accepted it because he had no other option in front of him. Mr. Slayman agreed to experimental medical procedures as he had faced a long wait for a human donor for organ donation in the past. He said:
“I saw it not only as a way to help me, but a way to provide hope for the thousands of people who need a transplant to survive.”
eGenesis
The genetically engineered porcine Kidney used in this pig kidney transplant was provided and modified by eGenesis. It is a biotech company that develops compatible organs suitable for the human body.
eGenesis scientists removed some pig genes that may cause organ rejection in the body and added human genes to enhance adaptability with the body.
“The eGenesis donor kidney (EGEN-2784) used for this procedure is the company’s lead candidate for kidney transplant and carries three classes of edits: (1) knock out of three genes involved in the synthesis of glycan antigens implicated in hyperacute rejection, (2) insertion of seven human transgenes involved in the regulation of pathways that modulate rejection: inflammation, innate immunity, coagulation, and complement, and (3) inactivation of the endogenous retroviruses in the porcine genome.”
There are more chances that without any edits- genetical modifications, a pig kidney would be rejected by a human body.
FDA
The pig kidney transplant to a human was conducted by a surgical team from the Mass General Transplant Center, and it took almost four hours on Saturday, March 16, 2024.
U.S. Food & Drug Administration (FDA) authorized the course through the Expanded Access program or compassionate use for patients having serious/ immediate life-threatening sickness/disorders. It grants experiment treatment access to specific patients.
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