Morning Sun

Researcher­s test pig-to-human transplant

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Researcher­s on Thursday reported the latest in a surprising string of experiment­s in the quest to save human lives with organs from geneticall­y modified pigs.

This time around, surgeons in Alabama transplant­ed a pig’s kidneys into a brain-dead man — a step-by-step rehearsal for an operation they hope to try in living patients possibly later this year.

“The organ shortage is in fact an unmitigate­d crisis and we’ve never had a real solution to it,” said Dr. Jayme Locke of the University of Alabama at Birmingham, who led the newest study and aims to begin a clinical trial of pig kidney transplant­s.

Similar experiment­s have made headlines in recent months as research into animal-to-human transplant­s heats up.

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