Human using Animal organs? What is xenotransplanation?

1. Definition

Let's get acquainted with xenotransplantation. Xenotransplantation is defined by the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) as "any procedure that involves the transplantation, implantation or infusion into a human recipient of either (a) live cells, tissues, or organs from a nonhuman animal source, or (b) human body fluids, cells, tissues or organs that have had ex vivo contact with live nonhuman animal cells, tissues or organs."

In short, It is a medical procedure that involves transplantation, implantation and infusion into a human recipient of either live cells, tissues or organs from an animal. Xenotransplantation was developed because the demand for human organs is very high and exceeds the existing supply. In America, 10 patients die every day while on the waiting list to receive a vital organ transplant that could save their life.

2. The history

Xenotransplantation is not new. In the 20th century, there were solid organ transplants from animals to humans, explains the Journal of the Royal Society of Medicine. There are records of patients surviving up to nine months after kidney transplantation from chimpanzees.

There are blood transfusions from animals to humans carried out in England and France from the early 17th century. In contrast, organ transplants from non-primates have shown little success. This is because primates are animals that have genetic closeness and DNA that is almost similar to humans compared to other animals.

3. Type of animal

From many type of animal species, pigs are considered the most suitable donor for humans. Then you might be thinking: Why not primates like chimpanzees, which have up to 98 percent DNA affinity? Apparently, primates are more at risk of carrying viruses that can infect humans than other animals, such as HIV, the virus responsible for AIDS, says The Conversation page.

On the other hand, pigs are generally raised on clean farms and their health is controlled, so the risk of infection from pigs is lower than primates. In addition, most of the organs of pigs work well in humans. Pig organs also have similarities with organs in the human body. There are several issues that need to be studied regarding pig's donor. For example, the maximum age of a pig is only 15 years and the organ that is donated will experience faster aging. Likewise, the size of the organs of pigs is not the same when compared to human organs.

Another problem is the matter of body temperature. Pigs have a body temperature of around 39°C, while the human body temperature is 37°C, says the Journal of the Royal Society of Medicine. Studies on differences in body temperature are still being carried out, whether it will have implications for humans as donor recipients or not. Please note that this one study does not involve the laws of any particular belief, so if it falls within your beliefs, just use this fact as information only. There are times when organs donated from animals experience incompatibility or rejection in the human body. What can be done to avoid this? This can be done by modifying the animal's genetic makeup and DNA with modern technology so that the tissue or organ is not recognized as foreign by transplant recipients, the Science Learning Hub page suggests.

In addition, it can be done by suppressing the recipient's immune system with drugs, although this can be toxic and affect the recipient's ability to fight infection. The recipient's immune system can also be manipulated by removing antibodies and adding immune cells from the donor animal.

4. The Benefit Pro & Cons

FDA says that transplantation of cells and tissues from animals can be a therapy for certain diseases, such as neurodegenerative disorders and diabetes. In addition, xenotransplantation can prevent human death due to waiting for available organs.

Despite the great potential, xenotransplantation raises concerns about infection and the possibility of transmitting various diseases. In addition, there is the potential for cross-species infection by retroviruses and can cause disease many years after infection. Therefore, research and further research is still being done on xenotransplantation.

Xenotransplantation is often referred to as one of the revolutions in the medical world. In addition, there is a high demand for donor organs. In 2017, there were 115,759 patients on waiting lists in the United States, some of whom died while waiting for organs. Using animal organs will reduce waiting time and prevent death.

However, on the other hand, there are ethical issues surrounding the use of animal organs for humans. Some people are concerned about the risk of diseases and infections that can be transmitted.