Chinese team transplants genetically modified pig lung into brain-dead man

(ECNS) -- Chinese scientists have successfully transplanted a genetically modified pig lung into a brain-dead man, according to a study published Monday in Nature Medicine.

Led by Professor He Jianxing of the First Affiliated Hospital of Guangzhou Medical University, the team implanted the left lung of a genetically edited Bama miniature pig into a 39-year-old brain-dead human recipient, simulating a clinically common single-lung transplantation procedure.

The donor pig carried six genetic edits designed to reduce the risk of immune rejection after transplantation into the human body. Postoperative monitoring data on respiration, blood, and imaging showed that the transplanted lung maintained ventilation and gas exchange functions for up to nine days, during which the recipient didn't immediately and intensely reject the lung and parallel pathogen testing found no evidence of active infection.

"The global demand for organ transplantation is increasingly growing, and xenotransplantation is a potential solution to donor shortage," said He. He added that the work was "a critical step forward" for the field.

He stated that the team will further optimize gene-editing strategies and anti-rejection treatment protocols to extend the survival and functional maintenance of transplanted organs.

The group also plans to apply its self-developed "tubeless" ventilation approach in future trials to reduce ventilator-induced lung injury and push xenotransplantation closer to clinical use.

The protocol complied with Chinese laws, regulations and ethical guidelines, was reviewed by the hospital's ethics committee and other relevant bodies, and was conducted with the consent of the recipient's family.

At the request of the recipient's family, doctors terminated the experiment on the 9th day.

Highlighting the scale of unmet need, CNN has reported that in the United States alone, there were more than 48,000 transplants in the country, while more than 103,000 people remained on waiting lists, and in 2023, the waiting list was roughly twice the number of transplants performed.

(By Zhang Dongfang)