"Gene pig" or a new direction of human organ transplantation

On September 1, the Science and Technology Department of Sichuan Province and the Department of Health jointly demonstrated the project on the key technology and platform for genetically engineered swine heterotransplantation. Experts from the Organ Transplantation Branch of the Chinese Medical Association, Professor Chen Shi of Huazhong University of Science and Technology, and experts in xenotransplantation said after hearing the project report that the project is of great significance for the promotion of basic and preclinical research work on xenotransplantation in China. Pigs will provide organ transplants to humans.

Organ transplantation is the main technique for the treatment of end-stage organ failure. However, the shortage of transplanted organs severely limits the clinical application of this technology. Therefore, the development of xenotransplantation research is one of the most important ways to solve organ shortage in the world. Due to the fact that the size and function of pig organs are relatively consistent with human organs and prone to breed, pigs are the preferred animal for human xenotransplantation in the world. In this field, genetically engineered pigs are favored for their similar anatomical, physiological and morphological advantages to human organs. At present, Harvard University, which is a leading research institute, has cultivated more than 20 generations of genetically engineered pigs.

In order to achieve breakthroughs in this cutting-edge field of international medicine, in May last year, the first person to be introduced to Sichuan’s “Hundred Talents Program” was Deng Shaoping, who was the director of the islet transplantation laboratory at the transplantation center of the Massachusetts General Hospital of Harvard Medical School. Sichuan Provincial Academy of Medical Sciences, Vice President of the People's Hospital of Sichuan Province, and Director of the Organ Transplantation Institute, and a team of doctors engaged in transplant research in China, formed a doctoral research team and implemented the "Genetic Engineering Pig Key Technology and Platform for Xenotransplantation" project. . At present, the project not only owns a dedicated experimental animal feeding base and 1,000 square meters of professional laboratories, but also cooperates with Harvard University to introduce the world's leading transgenic animals and Gal knockout pigs, and plans to establish a genetic engineering pig breeding base in China. A pig-monkey experimental animal model was used to perform hepatic organ perfusion to treat hepatic failure, islet cell transplantation for the treatment of diabetes and immunological tolerance induction for renal transplantation.

Deng Shaoping said that the next-generation project team will establish a national-level genetically engineered pig experimental animal breeding research base to provide animal sources for comprehensive xenotransplantation studies in the future; establish a national key laboratory for xenotransplantation and carry out preclinical research on xenotransplantation; Establish a national-level heterogeneous cooperation framework to promote the healthy development and early clinical application of xenotransplantation research. The research areas involved in the future project team will include: To address the frontier issues of clinical xenotransplantation, to further develop genetically engineered pigs genetically engineered on the basis of the introduction of genetically engineered pigs, to carry out their applications in the field of transplantation immunization; Establishment of genetically engineered pig islets Separation and purification technology, pre-clinical studies of islet transplantation of transgenic pigs to monkeys, establishment of an animal model of transgenic pigs organ transplanted to monkeys, and use of protein biochip technology to study and evaluate the efficacy and safety of xenotransplantation for clinical xenotransplantation Apply to lay the foundation.