Pig-Human Hybrids Could Be Used To Harvest Organs For Transplants
Last week, scientists announced that they have successfully added human stem cells to a pig embryo, creating a hybrid animal they called a chimera, after the mythical creature.
The breakthrough, detailed in the science journal Cell, could potentially be the start of a new way to produce organs for human transplant. Organs grown inside the pig-human hybrid will be easier for human bodies to accept because of its’ partial human DNA. Once the organs inside the pig have reached the desired size, the big would be slaughtered and the organs would be harvested for transplant. This system could greatly benefit the 76,000 people currently waiting for organ transplants in the United States.
While the hybrid animal will still look like a pig and not display any human features, some ethicist have worried about the creation of freakish lab made creatures and raising pigs strictly to harvest their organs.
“I support the idea,” said Medical ethicist and the director of the Division of Medical Ethics at NYU’s Langone Medical Center Art Caplan on Boston Public Radio Tuesday. “The motive is good. It is to try to find ways to grow organs to meet this terrible shortage we have of organs for transplants. Scientists aren’t hanging around trying to figure out how to make a minotaur or some kind of freakish thing for their amusement.”
Read more: http://news.wgbh.org/2017/01/31/pig-human-hybrids-could-be-used-harvest-organs-transplants
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