For the very first time in the medical history, the doctors in USA have performed the first transplant of a genetically modified kidney from a pig into a human body.
The surgery was performed at the Massachusetts General Hospital on Saturday.
A 62-year-old patient Richard Slayman of Weymouth, Massachusetts received the organ in a four-hour procedure, hospital announced. Richard was suffering from type 2 diabetes and high blood pressure. He is recovering well and expected to be discharged soon.
In 2018, Slayman had previously received a human kidney transplant, but that kidney showed signs of failure after five years, sending him back to dialysis.
The kidney was provided by eGenesis of Cambridge, Massachusetts, from a pig that had been genetically edited to remove genes harmful to a human recipient and add certain human genes to improve compatibility, as reported by Reuters.
“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,” said Tatsuo Kawai, HMS professor of surgery and director of the Legorreta Center for Clinical Transplant Tolerance at Mass General hospital. as reported in Harvard Medical School.