Skip to main content

Is it possible to have an animal to human organ transplant? 

Transplanting animal organs into humans has been in the works for centuries.
The transplantation of animal organ, tissues or cell across species is called Xenotransplantation.
Tissue xenotransplants have been carried out as early as the 17th to 18th century when blood was transfused into human patients with mixed results.
In 1838, the first corneal xenotransplantation (from a pig) was performed in a patient, whereas the first corneal allograft (human-to-human) was not carried out until more than 65 years later, in 1905.
China has reportedly performed more than 400 corneal xenotransplants since 2015 when it was approved.
Organ xenotransplantation has actually been performed as far back as the early 20th century when a French surgeon implanted a pig kidney and a goats liver in his human patients, they didn't survive, It'd have been a miracle if they did.
In 1963, chimpanzee kidneys were transplanted into 13 patients. It's reported one of them actually survived for 9 months before dying of what was believed to be electrolyte disturbance. Probably organ rejection.
In 1964, Hardy carried out the first xeno heart transplant using a chimpanzee heart but the patient died within 2 hours.
In 1966, Starlz transplanted the first chimpanzee liver into a human. By 1992 his patient was able to survive for 70 days following a baboon liver transplant.
Baboons and Chimpanzees are a favoured donor because of the close genetic relatedness we share. They are hardy virus carriers and there have been ethical concerns regarding their use.
Pigs are the next favourite, their anatomy is similar to that of humans and are generally healthier than baboons. Genetically modified pigs offer a hope of limitless supply of blood and organs for those in need.
Xenotransplant procedures are still experimental presently and the main risk to the procedure is organ rejection, just as it is for human to human transplants.
However an added risk is the probability of a Zoonotic disease outbreak. Animals carry lots of pathogens, some of which are harmless to them but very harmful to us.
In the nearest future, as early as 5 years, we might have successful xenotransplants with better prognosis than human transplants. Hopefully.

Comments

Popular posts from this blog

Are the shapes of RBCs really important?  People often say it’s to maximize surface area to volume ratio and thus the efficiency of oxygen diffusion from the blood plasma to all the hemoglobin in the RBC. I used to write that myself. I don’t believe it anymore, on at least two grounds: (1)  The RBCs of birds have to be just as efficient as ours in transporting oxygen, if not more so because of the demands of flight. But bird RBCs are football-shaped with a big nucleus, so I don’t think RBC shape has anything to do with gas transport efficiency. Bird erythrocytes: (2)  The only places that our RBCs load or unload oxygen is in the blood capillaries of the lungs and systemic tissues, and in both of these places, our RBCs  don’t have  that discoidal, biconcave shape. To squeeze through the capillaries, they become rounded, teardrop-shaped, or even folded over like a soft deflated air pillow folded double. The biconcave shape exists only in the larger ve...
KIDS AND PORNOGRAPHY - HOW TO STOP THEM Do you know what your teenager/younger one is doing on that data enabled phone or iPad??* Don't be caught unaware. Pornography is available with just one click. How about social media? Do you have any control over how much time they spend on it when they should be studying or sleeping? I am sure you worry about these things even though you realize that they need these devices as a means of communication and even learning. But as good parents, we must protect the minds of our teenagers and children. I thought it was a joke when my pastor's wife told me that there is a mobile application that I can download, just like I downloaded WhatsApp.  I did not believe it could actually protect my son until I tried it out myself. I have visited www.mindguard.com.ng and I have downloaded the parent app on my phone and the digital coach on my child's phone so that I can protect him from the dangers associated with the internet without...
WHAT A GREAT STORY *This is a great story. Take a moment to read it; I Pray it will make your day* A wealthy man and his son loved to collect rare works of art. They had everything in their collection, from Picasso to Raphael. They would often sit together and admire the great works of art.. When the Vietnam conflict broke out, the son went to war. He was very courageous and died in battle while rescuing another soldier. The father was notified and grieved deeply for his only son. About a month later, just before Christmas, There was a knock at the door. A young man stood at the door with a large package in his hands.. He said, 'Sir, you don't know me, but I am the soldier for whom your son gave his life. He saved many lives that day, and he was carrying me to safety when a bullet struck him in the heart and he died instantly... He often talked about you, and your love for art.' The young man held out this package. 'I know this isn't much. I'm...