XI’AN, March 26 – In a groundbreaking medical achievement, Chinese doctors have transplanted a genetically modified pig liver into a brain-dead human for the first time, offering hope for future organ donation solutions.
The procedure, conducted by doctors at the Fourth Military Medical University in Xi’an, involved a liver from a miniature pig with six edited genes to improve compatibility. The transplant took place on March 10 and was closely monitored for 10 days before being terminated at the family’s request, researchers reported in Nature.
While pig organs have been transplanted into living patients in the U.S., livers have posed greater challenges. With global demand for liver transplants far exceeding supply, scientists hope gene-edited pig livers could eventually serve as a life-saving option, even if only temporarily, for critically ill patients.
The team emphasized that strict ethical guidelines were followed throughout the procedure, marking another step forward in the evolving field of xenotransplantation.