Is Xenotransplation a viable solution to organ scarcity?

Recent developments in gene editing have led to a renewed interest in xenotransplantation as a potential supply of organs to people in need.

The company eGenesis is working on developing pig donors for kidney tranplantation, and recently recieved 100 million dollars in funding:
https://www.fiercebiotech.com/medtec...enetic-editing

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By using gene editing to unlock new sources of safe and human-compatible organs, eGenesis hopes to cut down the long and tragic delays faced by those waiting for a potential transplant, including more than 113,000 people in the U.S. alone. Now, the xenotransplantation firm has raised a staggering $100 million for its efforts, led by the venture capital arm of the dialysis provider Fresenius Medical Care, one of the largest companies on the front lines of end-stage and chronic kidney diseases.

There has been some success, though apparently mixed results, with primate transplantations:

http://www.frontlinegenomics.com/new...s-in-primates/

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In recent years, steps have been made towards this goal of successful xenotransplantation. National Institutes of Health researchers have sustained pig hearts inside baboons for two years, alongside the creatures’ own heart. Last year it was also reported that several monkeys were able to survive for around half a year after their hearts were swapped with a pig’s. In all cases, the organs were genetically engineered to prevent immediate human rejection, offset immune attacks and stop blood clots.

A paper addressing the subject:
https://immunology.sciencemag.org/content/4/41/eaau6298

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The success of organ transplantation is limited by the complications of immunosuppression, by chronic rejection, and by the insufficient organ supply, and thousands of patients die every year while waiting for a transplant. With recent progress in xenotransplantation permitting porcine organ graft survival of months or even years in nonhuman primates, there is renewed interest in its potential to alleviate the organ shortage. Many of these advances are the result of our heightened capacity to modify pigs genetically, particularly with the development of CRISPR-Cas9–based gene editing methodologies. Although this approach allows the engineering of pig organs that are less prone to rejection, the clinical application of xenotransplantation will require the ability to avoid the ravages of a multifaceted attack on the immune system while preserving the capacity to protect both the recipient and the graft from infectious microorganisms. In this review, we will discuss the potential and limitations of these modifications and how the engineering of the graft can be leveraged to alter the host immune response so that all types of immune attack are avoided.

via International Skeptics Forum https://ift.tt/34bfG9G