Pigs can 'donate' to people

By gene regulation, Harvard University (USA) said in the future it is possible to use pig organs to transplant for humans.

In the future, pig organs can be grafted to humans

According to the BBC and Telegraph on October 12, George Church and Harvard University scientists conducted research using genetic modification technology called CRISPR to eliminate the potential for harm from pig's DNA to make money. for the use of pig organs for human transplantation.

If successful, this will be the answer to a serious shortage of current organ donations in the world.

In the future, pigs can 'donate' organs for human transplantation - (Photo: Reuters).

CRISPR is a relatively new scientific tool that allows scientists to customize the DNA genetic code. It is arguably the greatest discovery in the molecular biology of the 21st century.

Previous studies have shown that organ transplantation of pigs into humans can pose a major health risk.

The reason is that parasitic virus in pigs (PERV) can infect human cells, although harmless to pigs. PERV virus has the potential to replicate in human cells and has been found to infect human cells in vitro.

The problem of eliminating PERV virus from pig DNA has been solved by American scientists. In tests on pig embryos, Professor Church said he had removed 62 copies of PERV by CRISPR technology.

The results of the study were published in the journal Nature and reported in a scientific workshop of the US National Academy of Sciences.

Still, scientists still need more time to test the compatibility of genetically modified pig cells on the human immune system before it can be applied in practice.