QuesttogrowhumanorgansinsidepigsinJapan

ByRupertWingfieldHayesBBCNews,Ibarakiprefecture,Japan,3January2014

Iamstandinginafullyfunctioning
operatingtheatre.Asurgeonandteamof
specialistsingreensmocksarepreparing
tooperate.ButI'mnotinahospital.Iam
onafarmdeepintheJapanese
countryside.Onthegurneyaboutto
undergotheknifeisasixmonthold
femalepig.Standingoverher,scalpelin
hand,isProfessorNagashima.He
carefullycutsopenherabdomenand
pullsoutheruterus.Tome,itlooksmore
likeintestinesbutheassuresmethisiswhatapig'suteruslookslike.Thenwithasyringeanda
catheter,hebeginstoinject40embryosintotheuterus.

Theunconsciouspigisabouttobecomeasurrogatemotherandtheembryossheisnowcarrying
areveryspecial.Theyare
chimeric
,thatis,
theycarrygeneticmaterialfromtwodifferentspecies
.
VideoLInk
.Afewyearsfromnow,willitbepossibletogrowsparehumanorgansinsidepigs?
InanearbyshedProfNagashimatakesmetoseehismostprizedpossessions.ForthisIhaveto
changeintofullsmock,hat,bootsandmask.Itisnottoprotectme,itistoprotecttheoccupants
fullygrownchimericpigs.

'Switchedoff'
Halfwaydownthelongwhiteshed,Iamintroducedtopignumber29alarge,hairymalewithjutting
tusks.Number29isawhitepig,butheiscoveredincoarse,blackhair.Moreimportantly,inside,he
hasthepancreasofablackpig.

Howisthatpossible?ItstartsoffbymakingwhatProfNagashimacalls"apancreatic"embryos.
Insidethewhitepigembryo,thegenethatcarriestheinstructionsfordevelopingtheanimal's
pancreashasbeen"switchedoff".TheJapaneseteamthenintroducestemcellsfromablackpiginto
theembryo.Whattheyhavediscoveredisthatasthepigdevelops,itwillbenormalexceptforits
pancreas,whichwillbegeneticallyablackpig's.Butthisisjustthefirststep.InalabatTokyo
UniversityProfessorHiroNakauchiistakingthenextone,andthisisevenmoreastonishing.Prof
Nakauchitakesskincellsfromanadultbrownrat.Hethenusesgenemanipulationtochangethese
adultskincellsintowhatarecalled"iPS"cells.Theamazingthingaboutinducedpluripotentstem
cellsisthattheyhavemanyofthesamecharacteristicsasembryonicstemcells.Inotherwords,they
candevelopintoanypartoftheanimal'sbody.

IPScellswerefirstcreatedin2006byJapanesemedicalresearcherDrShinyaYamanaka.In2012,
hewontheNobelPrizeforhisdiscovery.Inhislab,ProfNakauchihassucceededinusingtheseiPS
cellstogrowabrownratpancreasinsideawhitemouse.Sowhyisallofthissoimportant?
Theultimateobjectiveofthisresearchistogethumanorganstogrowinsidepigs.Byitself,that
wouldbeamassivebreakthroughforscience.ButwhatProfNakauchiistryingtoachievegoes
further.Heishopingtodevelopatechniquetotakeskincellsfromahumanadultandchangethemin
toiPScells.ThoseiPScellscanthenbeinjectedintoapigembryo.

IslandofDrMoreau
VideoLinkunderIslandofDrMoreau

ProfNakauchihassuccessfullyutilisediPScellstogrowabrownratpancreasinsideawhitemouse
Theresult,hehopes,willbeapigwithahumanpancreasorkidneyorliver,ormaybeevenahuman
heart.Notonlythat,theorganwouldbegeneticallyidenticaltothehumanfromwhichtheskincells
weretaken.

Thisisoneoftheholygrailsofmedicalresearch:theabilitytoreproduceahumanorganthatis
geneticallyidenticaltothepersonwhoneedsit.Itcouldmeananendtodonorwaitinglists,andan
endtoproblemsoforganrejection.

Buttherearemanypotentialobstaclesahead.Thefirstisthatpigsandhumansareonlydistantly
related.Itisonethingtogetablackpigpancreastogrowinsideawhitepig,quiteanothertogeta
humanpancreastodothesame.ProfNakauchiisconfidentitcanbedone.Hethinksitwilltakeat
leastfiveyears,butadmitsitcouldtakemuchlonger.

Theotherproblemisgettingapproval.InJapan,itisillegaltomakehumananimalhybrids.Prof
Nakauchiispushingforachangeinthelaw.Butifthatdoesnothappen,hemayhavetomovehis
researchtoAmerica.

TherearemanyhereinJapanwhoopposetheideaofhumananimalhybrids.Animalrightsactivists
objecttotheideaofpigs,sheeporgoatsbeingusedashumanorganfactories.Manymorefeel
uncomfortableabouttheideaofpighumanhybrids.ItbringstomindHGWells'scificlassic,The
IslandofDrMoreau.

ProfNakauchisaidhisresearchiscompletelydifferent.Thepigswouldstillbepigstheywouldjust
becarryingsomehumantissueinsidethem.Hesaidtherehasalwaysbeenresistancetonew
scientificbreakthroughs.HepointstowidespreadobjectionstoInVitroFertilisation(IVF)whenitwas
inventedinBritainthe1970s.Today,IVFisusedacrosstheworld,andnoonethinksitisstrangeor
unethical.Whatevertheethicaldebate,forthehundredsofthousandsofpeoplearoundtheworld
waitingforanewkidneyorliver,theprospectofbeingabletomakeonetoorderisanastonishing
thought.