Oct. 9, 2001
COLUMBIA, Mo. — More than 6,100 Americans died waiting for organ transplants in 1999, and more than 78,000 are waiting today. Xenotransplantation — the transplanting of an organ from one species to another — is considered to be one solution to the shortage. With the successful birth of a special litter of pigs at the University of Missouri-Columbia, researchers are one step closer to making it a reality.
Since early March, Randy Prather, an MU professor of animal science, has watched as a set of piglets has grown in his lab. Though they look just like other pigs, they do have one unique characteristic: Their hooves and snouts are yellow.
“They’re transgenic, which means they have genetic material from another species,” he said. “In this case, it’s a fluorescent gene from a jellyfish. We use this gene because it provides us with a visual marker that proves the pigs are indeed transgenic.”
Prather’s team used a cloning process called nuclear transfer. First, the researchers inserted genetic material containing the jellyfish gene into pig cells growing in the laboratory. Then, they took nuclei from these cells and inserted them into mature eggs that contained no chromosomes. The eggs were inserted into a surrogate mother, which carried the piglets until birth. Prior to this study, which is to be published in the journal Animal Biotechnology, the only other reliable method of creating transgenic pigs was pronuclear injection. However, pronuclear injection doesn’t allow for the specific genetic changes necessary for organ transplant.
“These animals prove that we can make genetic modifications to express desired traits,” Prather said. “For xenotransplantation, this is a large step because it means it’s possible to change the genetic makeup of the cells to prevent the body’s rejection of transplanted organs.”
In addition to organ transplant, Prather said genetic modifications could benefit both biomedical research and agricultural advancement. “Research such as fertilization studies could become more efficient with the real-time analysis visible genetic markers could provide. From an agriculture standpoint, genetic changes could be made for countless improvements,” he said.
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EDITOR’S NOTE: A photo of Prather’s transgenic pigs is available online at www.missouri.edu/~news/releases/Pratherpigs.html. Video footage also is available by contacting Jason L. Jenkins at (573) 882-6217 or JenkinsJL@missouri.edu.