A monkey in South Korea has been living for over 100 days after receiving a heart transplant from a pig. As the path to extending life by transplanting pig organs into humans is being opened around the world, the success of such research in Korea is expected to provide new hope for patients who have no other option than organ transplants.
On May 27, the Korea Institute of Toxicology (KIT) announced that a primate that received a heart transplant from a genetically modified mini pig survived for 100 days, setting a record for the longest survival among primates in Korea that have received cross-species heart transplants. The previous record for the longest survival of a primate receiving a cross-species heart transplant was 60 days by a Konkuk University Medical Center research team.
The research team aims for one clinical application each in the fields of cross-species cells, tissues, and solid organs such as kidneys, hearts, and livers by 2027.
Dr. Hwang Jeong Ho’s animal model research group at the Korea Institute of Toxicology, in collaboration with Professor Yoon Ik Jin from the Department of Surgery at Konkuk University Medical Center and a research team from Optipharm, successfully transplanted a genetically modified mini pig’s heart into a monkey on February 16.
Immune suppression regulation of the monkey receiving the cross-species organ transplant is cited as a key technology. Based on its primate safety evaluation knowledge accumulated over 20 years, the Korea Institute of Toxicology was responsible for monitoring the immune rejection reaction and blood biochemical monitoring of the monkey that received the organ transplant.
Hwang said, “We will use the data from this research as a stepping stone to apply cross-species organ transplantation to clinical practice and ultimately strive to transplant cross-species organs into patients with organ failure.”
