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Animal-to-human transplants, a cure for diabetes?
SMC Alert
16/07/09
IMMEDIATE
RELEASE
Xenotransplantation and the LCT trials in New Zealand
Living Cell Technologies, a New Zealand-based
biotech firm, is about to begin trials on a potentially
revolutionary diabetes treatment.
The treatment will be based on xenotransplantation - the transplantation of animal cells, tissues or organs into human patients. In this case, LCT has been granted approval to transplant pig islet cells into sufferers of labile diabetes, in an attempt to cure the disease.
The trials have sparked interest globally and could potentially make New Zealand a significant player in this cutting-edge area of science.
But what are the ramifications of this new technology? How safe is it, and what needs to be done to prove its worth?
Xenotransplantation is the transplantation of living cells, tissues or even organs from one species to another - in this case, from pigs to humans. As such, it offers a potential treatment for people with heart, kidney or other organ failures, and chronic conditions like diabetes and Alzheimer's disease. If perfected, it could mean that organ transplant waiting lists would become a thing of the past.
It also, however, raises complex scientific and ethical concerns. Religious groups and animal rights supporters have weighed in on the issue. Scientists have also voiced concerns around the possibility of viruses moving between species, the differing rate at which human and other organs age, and the consequences of changing animals' genes in this way.
Last month, after a comprehensive review and an agreement on revised conditions, New Zealand's Health Minister granted Living Cell Technologies (LCT) permission to conduct clinical trials of its diabetes treatment, DIABECELL®. What could the trials mean for New Zealand? What is the science behind them? And why is there a moratorium on xenotransplantation in other countries, including Australia?
In this Science Media Centre briefing the co-founder of LCT and a member of the International Xenotransplantation Association (IXA) will talk about xenotransplantation and the trials.
ENDS
Science Media Centre NZ
Our aim is to promote accurate, evidence-based reporting on science and technology by helping the media work more closely with the scientific community.
The Science Media Centre is New Zealand's only trusted, independent source of information for the media on all issues related to science. Thousands of news stories providing context from and quoting New Zealand researchers have been published as a direct result of our work.
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