Czech scientists are participating in research that should in the future ensure almost an unlimited stock of transplant organs for patients: heart, liver, pancreas or kidneys. The organs would come from pigs.
“Welcome to the farm with genetically modified pigs. They are just having lunch,” says friendly Sarah, pointing at a screen that monitors animals online in their rooms. This farm in Minnesota’s Rochester in the United States belongs to a hospital, which is among the best in the world – the Mayo Clinic. A branch of the first-rate “animal centre” will also open in Brno.
Sci-fi research
A small room without windows is lit only by artificial light. A big sow lies contentedly at a wall, with piglets toddling around her. The room does not look too different from an ordinary piggery.
One hundred and fifty cross-bred pigs are raised in strict quarantine not for meat, but for organs. The functions and qualities of pig organs are very close to those of humans.
“We are conducting research on so-called xenotransplantations, that is, transplants of organs from one animal species to another. So far, we have successfully transplanted a pig’s heart into a baboon. If we have good results, pigs’ hearts, liver, pancreas or kidneys could be also commonly transplanted into humans,” explains professor Christopher McGregor, who is in charge of research at the Mayo Clinic.
Czech doctors are also members of his team, which works on advanced research that seems rather like science fiction.
“They are gaining experience here, as a similar animal centre will be built in Brno within several years, as part of the International Clinical Research Centre (IRCR). We will get the research know-how from the Mayo Clinic,” says Tomáš Kára, a cardiologist, who is responsible for the IRCR project.
“Organ transplants from other animal species represent a big hope for patients. There is a lack of donors. Currently the ratio of donor to person on the waiting list is one to one hundred, and it will be even higher in the future. That is why research is so important, and we will participate on it with Mayo Clinic next year,” Kára adds.
High-standard care for pigs
Only the farm’s employees can get to the pigs.
“We shower them regularly. We approach them wearing masks, surgical gloves and coats. We cannot feed them just anything. It is mostly vegetarian food, which we further prepare,” says Sarah, who has been on the research team for several years.
The farm is a world of its own: It has its own water distilled through several filters and its own air cleaner and fuel supplies, which enable the smooth operation of the large complex of laboratories and pig rooms. A central computer regulates the temperature in the rooms.
“We have to keep strict rules for water and air cleaning. Pigs and their organs must not be affected by anything, especially by any infections or viruses. Otherwise, the transplants would not be successful and human or monkey bodies would not accept the transplanted organs. That’s why they spend all their lives only on the farm,” Sarah says.
The employees also have to obey strict rules: Even if they have just a slight cold, they have to take time off work, so that the pigs do not get infected.
A farm for millions
“It won’t be cheap to build a farm in the Czech Republic. The farm in Rochester cost USD 80 million. We would like to apply for funding from European Structural Funds,” Kára says.
In the meantime, the Czechs would participate in the development of advanced technology that enables acquiring biological substitutes for human organs.
“Animal organ transplants could be used for humans in eight or ten years. There have been two or three such attempts, with the first attempt taking place in 1966, but the woman died several hours after the operation. In 1984, a small child lived with an animal heart for about 18 days. It was a big breakthrough at that time,” says Michal Vlašín, another Czech doctor at the Mayo Clinic.
Translated with permission by the Prague Daily Monitor.
