Scientists have found a method of using gene editing to make pig-to-human organ transplants possible and provide help for people needing new kidneys, livers, lungs, and hearts. For decades they have been tweaking genetically modified (GM) pig deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA) so people's bodies would not reject the animal's tissue due to the human immune system.
The research was conducted by Harvard University researchers. Their findings were published in the journal Science on October 11, Sunday.
Medical researchers had to tackle the problem that pig DNA contains the porcine endogenous retrovirus (PERV). It makes pig-to-human organ transplantation through genome editing impossible after infecting human cells.
Geneticist Professor George Church and his research team have developed an innovative technology called CRISPR-Cas9, according to Tech Times. It trims down the retrovirus' genetic code.
Church conducted tests on pig embryos. His team eliminated each of the 62 copies of PERVs that the human immune system would have normally detected.
In lab tests it was 1,000 times less likely for transplanted GM pig cells to infect human kidney cells, according to The Market Business. The team's next goal is to develop retrovirus-free pig clones whose organs could be transplanted.
Church said that researchers still have to solve the problem of the human immune system's rejection of pig DNA, but his team's new discovery makes xenotransplantation.(animal-to-human organ transplants) one step closer.
The lead researcher described the study's results as "cool." That was because it set a CRIPR record for the genetic modification of any animal, and solved the biggest xenotransplantation problem.
Currently over 123,000 Americans are on the waiting list to receive a life-saving organ transplant. A new person is added to the list every 12 minutes.
This video explains what a retrovirus is: