Miniature Swine Bred for Use as Compatible Organ Donors

Three miniature swine have been born that were genetically modified to make their tissues and cells more compatible for potential transplant into humans.

In these miniature swine, both copies of a specific gene responsible for rapid rejection of pig organs by human recipients have been eliminated, in order to make them a safe source of organs and tissues for transplants. To develop the swine, scientists used nuclear transfer technology; developed molecular techniques to target the first copy of the specific gene of interest, cloned from genetically modified cells; and then developed a method to remove the second copy of the specific gene of interest. The swine are the result of a long-term collaborative effort by Infigen, Inc. (Deforest, WI, USA) and Immerge BioTherapeutics, Inc. (Charlestown, MA, USA). The research was partially funded by the Advanced Technology Program of the US National Institutes of Standards and Technology.

"Genetic modification techniques represented by these knockout miniature swine may not only provide necessary transplants for the critically ill but can also produce porcine models of other human diseases to test novel therapies,” said Walter Simson, CEO of Infigen.




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