Some fundies are gonna freak the hell out about this

[ddstory.livejournal.com]

Scientists just made a breakthrough by creating the first human-pig embryo that could revolutionize healthcare

...The ultimate goal of this type of work is to grow human organs inside of other animals as a means to ending the organ shortage that is costing thousands of Americans — who need a transplant — their lives each year.

Well, not just Americans but we get the point. Now cue the "OMG Frankenstein chimera!" lamentations of the Medieval segment of the public. I'm sure if there's a Christian Doomsday Clock somewhere, it has moved a few minutes closer to the Apocalypse now.

But seriously, when you overcome your initial revulsion ("OMG, this is so sick!"), and force yourself to study this, you might consider this. Think of this way: if you transplant a kidney into a pig, it's still a pig. Transplanting cells that could grow one of YOUR kidneys in a pig still makes it a pig, which you might one day need very much.

This scientific achievement holds promise of helping so many people needing organ transplants for everything from cornea eye to kidney transplants. It also helps have a rudimentary understanding of CRISPR gene editing. Regarding "human-pig" chimeras, the key is in understanding "induced Pluripotent Stem Cells", or iPS for short. There are three types, and the type used to grow organs are iPS cells.

"iPS cells offer great therapeutic potential. Because they come FROM A PATIENT'S OWN CELLS (caps mine), they are genetically matched to that patient, so they can eliminate tissue matching and tissue rejection problems that currently hinder successful cell and tissue transplantation." (source)

Thus, these are NOT cells used from an aborted fetus. Thus,
1) If you need a pancreas transplant, a sample of cells from YOUR own body, like skin cells, are used, and 2) The scientists used a pig's "egg" and edits out, or snips out its gene for a pancreas, using the CRISPR gene editing. That egg then could not produce a pig pancreas, but - the human skin cell, when injected into the egg, can fill in the void, creating and growing a replica of YOUR pancreas in a pig fetus.

Genius, humane cures, and what the 21st century should be about... I hope we don't blow this. Medieval fundies, I'm looking at you.

Comments

[johnny9fingers.livejournal.com]

I think we may just have found a way to unite the Animal Rights extremists with the religious fundamentalist nutters.

[luzribeiro.livejournal.com]

I listened to an interview with a professor for "domestic animal genetics" (or something to that effect) on the radio on Friday. He wouldn't call it a breakthrough, as nearly all the human cells had already died, as was to be expected. He said it is highly unlikely that any significant number of human cells would survive for more than 4 weeks. So there is still a very long way to go.

[policraticus.livejournal.com]

Fundamentalist Muslims, Jews and Hindus, maybe. Frundamentalist Buddhists, probably. Fundamentalist Vegans, certainly. Fundamentalist Animal Rights activists, assuredly.

We Christians quite like bacon. All else being equal. So, if I can grow myself a new spleen and get some pork chops? I see no down side.

[johnny9fingers.livejournal.com]

You're probably right.

Though all of this it reminds me of segregated transfusion services in historical places like apartheid South Africa, etc.

I mean, we're not talking about black pigs, are we? ;)

[nairiporter.livejournal.com]

I'm not sure why they have named this chimera. In Greek mythology, the chimera was part human, part lion, part goat, part snake.

[johnny9fingers.livejournal.com]

Chimera have been made for a few decades. I remember seeing a duck/chicken one and a sheep/goat one years ago. And the usage was conceived before the breakthrough, IIRC.