Potential Future Uses
Because there is a worldwide shortage of organs for clinical implantation, about 20–35% of patients awaiting replacement organs die on the waiting list.Healy DG, Lawler Z, McEvoy O, et al. (2005). "Heart transplant candidates: factors influencing waiting list mortality". Ir Med J 98 (10): 235–7. PMID 16445141. Certain procedures, some of which are being investigated in early clinical trials, aim to use cells or tissues from other species to treat life-threatening and debilitating illnesses such as cancer, diabetes, liver failure and Parkinson's disease. If vitrification can be perfected, it could allow for long-term storage of xenogenic cells, tissues and organs so that they would be more readily available for transplant.
Xenotransplants could save thousands of patients waiting for donated organs. The animal organ, probably from a pig or baboon could be genetically altered with human genes to trick a patient’s immune system into accepting it as a part of its own body. They have re-emerged because of the lack of organs available and the constant battle to keep immune systems from rejecting allotransplants. Xenotransplants are thus potentially a more effective alternative.
Also, xenotransplantation of ovarian tissue into immunodeficient nude mice or SCID mice is already used in research to study the development of ovarian follicles. Mature follicles have developed, even after use of cryopreserved ovarian tissue. Both host and graft vessels contribute to the revascularization of xenografted human ovarian tissue in a mouse.
Read more about this topic: Xenotransplantation
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