Xenotransplantation

By: Alicia Skinner

What is Xenotransplantation?• the transplantation of cells, tissues or organs from animals to humans

Cell Therapies• bone marrow, specialized cells (e.g. islet cells, brain cells

Tissue Transplants or External Therapies•skin grafts, animal liver used as a bridge to filter blood

Whole Organs•hearts, livers, kidneys, lungs or pancreas

• cells, tissues or organs come from a source animal that can be nonhuman primates such as chimpanzees and baboons or other animals • pigs are the preferred animal source due to similar weight and physiology to humans •pigs are also easy to breed, have large litters and may pose less risk of infection than nonhuman primates • believed to be a solution to the worldwide organ shortage

http://img.timeinc.net/time/daily/2008/0801/science_transplant_0211.jpg

History

1682• a Russian aristocrat's skull is successfully repaired using a bone from a dog

1964

1963-1964

1969-1974

1977

1984

• dates as far back as the 17th century• trial and error system until the 1960s where it changed into systematic science• has been minimal success with cell therapies using xenotransplantation• no successful whole organs transplants have occurred to date• survival ranging from hours to 9 months after sugery

19921972

1993

1995

1998

19991997

• a newborn named Fae receives a heart from a baboon due to being born with a heart with a poorly developed left side•lived for 20 days with the help of cyclosporin

http://www.llu.edu/news/today/dec299/mc.htm

21st Century• limited number human clinical trials going on in several countries

• United States, Spain, Belgium , Germany, New Zealand, Sweden• overseen and approved by various government organizations and committees

• some countries like Australia have placed a moratorium on xenotransplantation• discussion about issues involving xenotransplantation and public consultations are still occurring in most countries

• regulations and restrictions• if clinical trials will be able to proceed

• transgenic pigs being bred in the United States

http://www.boingboing.net/2004/12/05-week/

Issues &

Concerns

• environmental, economical, animal welfare and health risks• organ rejection and zoonosis are the two major concerns• immunosuppressive drugs are currently used, however they weaken the patients immune system and leave them more vulnerable to infection• inserting human genes into pigs to make transgenic animals makes the animals cells more acceptable to the human immune system• life long immunosuppressive drug regiment• transfer of a disease from one species of animals to humans• could be contagious• spread from the infected recipient to the wider community• could be an unidentified animal infection or could remain dormant for a time before signs of infection begin to show• possibility of a new epidemic • life long monitoring of the recipient to see if infected

Issues &

Concerns

Ethical Issues• human clinical trials• exposure of wider community to possible infection • crossing of the species barrier• life long monitoring• transgenic pigs

http://www.animallawcoalition.com/animal-cruelty/article/557

http://www.yourcanadianconnection.ca/images_of_hamilton.html

Works CitedA History of Xenotranplanttation Experiments. (n.d.). Retrieved December 1,2008, from PBS Web site:

http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/shows/organfarm/etc/cron.html.

Judson, Karen. (2001). Genetic Engineering:Debating the Benefits and Concerns. (pp 34-38). Berkley Heights: Enslow Publishers Inc.

Our Charter. (2006, may 28). Retrieved December 1, 2008, from Asia Pacific Alliance Against Xenotransplantation (APAAX) Web site: http://www.apaxx.org/charter.htm.

Revised Fact Sheet on Xenotransplantation. (2001, March 1). Drug and Health Products. [Fact Sheet]. Retrieved November 26, 2008, from Health Canada Web site: http://www.hs-sc.gc.ca/dhp-mps/brgtherap/activit/fs-fi/xeno_fact-fait-eng.php.

Rosser, H. (2005, Feburary). Animal to Human Transplantation: a Moratorium for Clinical Trials Announced. Animals Today. 13(1), 19-19. Retrieved November 26, 2008, from Canadian Reference Centre database.

Templeton, S. (n.d.). Winston to farm Pigs for Transplants. Sunday Tims, The. Retrieved November 26, 2008, from Canadian Reference Centre database.

The Ethics of Xenotransplantation. [Fact Sheet]. (2002, October). Retrieved December 1, 2008, from the University of Queensland, Office of Public Policy and Ethics, Institute of Molecular Bioscience Web site: http://www.uq.edu.au/oppe/PDFS/Xenotransplantation.pdf

The History of Xenotransplantation. (1999, August 19). Sci/Tech. [News Article]. Retrieved December 1, 2008, from BBC News Web site: http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/science/nature/425120.stm.

Xenotransplantation. (2004, May). Animals Today. 12(2), 31-31. Retrieved November 26, 2008, from Canadian Reference Centre database.

Xenotransplantation Action Plan. (2006, April 27). Center for Biologics Evaluation and Research. Retrieved November 26, 2008, from U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) Web site: http://www.fda.gov/cber/xap/xap.htm.

Xenotransplantation Action Plan Components. (2001, December 17). Center for Biologics Evaluation and Research. Retrieved November 26, 2008, from U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) Web site: http://www.fda.gov/cber/xap/comp.htm.

What’s Wrong with Xenotransplantation. (n.d.). Retrieved December I, 2008, from Campaign for Responsible Transplantation (CRT) Web site: http://www.crt-online.org/wrong.html