Researchers in the U.S. are preparing to conduct a groundbreaking clinical trial to test whether livers from gene-edited pigs can effectively treat people with sudden liver failure by temporarily filtering their blood. The trial has been approved by the FDA and will be conducted by eGenesis and OrganOx. Many people in the U.S. experience sudden liver failure each year, with limited treatment options and high mortality rates.
The study, set to begin later this spring, will involve attaching the pig liver externally to study participants rather than transplanting it. The goal is to see if the pig’s liver can support the functions of a human liver long enough for it to potentially regenerate. Initial experiments on deceased bodies showed promising results, with the pig liver able to support basic liver functions for several days.
The trial will enroll up to 20 patients in intensive-care units who are not eligible for a liver transplant. A device created by OrganOx will be used to pump the participants’ blood through the pig liver. This groundbreaking research is part of ongoing efforts to use gene-edited pig organs to save human lives, with similar experiments involving pig kidneys already in progress. This innovative approach could offer hope to those facing sudden liver failure and could potentially revolutionize the field of organ transplantation in the future.
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