Scientists from the company PorMedTec Tokyo, which belongs to the Meiji University in Tokyo, created for the first time in Japan together with the American biotechnology company eGenesis genetically modified pigs for transplanting cells and organs into humans, EFE and Agerpres report.

A team at the cutting edge of research in the field of xenotransplantation — transplanting an organ from an animal — announced in a statement Tuesday the birth of three genetically modified piglets to create cells and organs for transplant into humans. .

Japan has a shortage of organ donors, and in recent years “only about 3% of transplant applicants have received one,” which “raises expectations for the clinical use of xenografts,” according to the company.

“We hope to use this as an opportunity to address the challenges of human organ transplantation,” PorMedTec founder scientist Hiroshi Nagashima was quoted as saying in a statement.

How Japanese researchers genetically modified pigs

The pigs were cloned from another sample developed by eGenesis that had ten genes altered to reduce the risk of the organ being rejected by the human recipient’s body. PorMedTec created piglets using nuclear transfer technology of somatic cells, responsible for the development of tissues and organs of multicellular creatures, to create genetically identical specimens.

Fertilized eggs were transplanted into the uterus of a surrogate mother, who gave birth to three piglets by caesarean section. Once the modified samples have been confirmed to develop properly, they will be provided to medical institutions in Japan for clinical trials.

The research team’s next step will be to begin this year a study of pig-to-monkey xenografts in response to Japan’s shortage of organ donors.

“With the birth of a cloned specimen in Japan, there is hope for clinical application in Japan in the future,” PorMedTec concluded in a statement.

According to the Japan Organ Transplant Network, cited by the Kyodo agency, there are currently about 16,000 people waiting to receive an organ registered in Japan.

In Japan, it is planned to transplant pig pancreatic islets into patients with type 1 diabetes and temporarily transplant a pig kidney into a fetus with severe kidney disease, such procedures have not been performed to date, Kyodo notes.