A genetically modified pig kidney kept functioning inside a human body for 61 days at NYU Langone Health — the longest a non-human organ has ever survived in a human patient. The milestone brings researchers closer to a future where pig organs could help close one of medicine’s most persistent gaps: the chronic shortage of donor kidneys.
At a glance
- Xenotransplantation: The pig kidney was transplanted on July 14 C.E. and continued to function until the experiment’s agreed-upon end date of September 13 C.E. — 61 days later, the longest documented run for a pig organ in a human body.
- Organ shortage: Around 100,000 people are on the U.S. kidney waitlist at any given time, yet only roughly 20,000 receive a transplant each year — a gap that researchers say makes alternatives like pig organs urgent.
- Gene editing: The kidney came from an FDA-approved GalSafe pig developed by Virginia-based Revivicor, engineered with a single gene modification that knocked out the protein responsible for triggering human immune rejection.
How the procedure worked
The transplant team at NYU Langone, led by Robert Montgomery — professor and director of the NYU Langone Transplant Institute — chose a deliberately simplified approach. Earlier xenotransplant experiments had used pig organs with as many as ten genetic modifications. This one used just one.
The GalSafe pig’s thymus gland was left attached to the kidney. That detail mattered: the thymus helped train the recipient’s immune system to tolerate the foreign organ rather than mount an all-out attack on it. The recipient was a 58-year-old man who had been declared dead by neurological criteria before the procedure. His family gave consent for the experiment, and the agreed endpoint was September 13 C.E., when he was removed from the ventilator.
“None of this would have been possible without the incredible support we received from the family of our deceased recipient,” Montgomery said in the NYU Langone press release. “Thanks to them, we have been able to gain critical insight into xenotransplantation as a hopeful solution to the national organ shortage.”
A record built on earlier attempts
NYU Langone’s team has been systematically pushing this science forward for several years. In September 2021 C.E., they performed what was described as the first xenotransplant of a genetically modified pig kidney to a human. A second attempt followed two months later. The team tried two more times the following summer.
Each experiment added knowledge about how human immune systems respond to pig tissue, which immunosuppression protocols work best, and how gene edits affect long-term organ function. The 61-day result represents the cumulative benefit of that learning curve.
“In order to create a sustainable unlimited supply of organs, we need to know how to manage pig organs transplanted into humans,” Montgomery said. “Testing them in a decedent allows us to optimize the immunosuppression regimen and choice of gene edits without putting a living patient at risk.”
What still needs to happen
The 61-day run was not without complication. About one month in, a mild rejection process began, and the patient required immunosuppression medication to keep it in check. That detail underscores how much work remains before xenotransplantation becomes a standard option for living patients.
The NYU Langone team is now preparing for clinical trials, which will first require FDA approval. That process will take time, and many questions — about long-term rejection risk, drug regimens, and which patients are best suited — remain open.
NYU transplant immunologist Massimo Mangiola framed the stakes plainly in comments to the Associated Press: “Why we’re doing this is because there are a lot of people that unfortunately die before having the opportunity of a second chance at life. And we need to do something about it.”
The ethical dimensions of using decedents as research recipients, and of sourcing organs from animals raised for the purpose, will also continue to draw scrutiny as the field moves toward human trials. Those conversations are worth having — and researchers in this space know it.
Still, 61 days of a functioning pig kidney in a human body is evidence that the biology can work. For the tens of thousands of people waiting for a kidney that may never arrive in time, that evidence carries real weight.
Read more
For more on this story, see: Futurism / Neoscope
For more from Good News for Humankind, see:
- Alzheimer’s risk cut in half by drug in landmark prevention trial
- Renewables now make up at least 49% of global power capacity
- The Good News for Humankind archive on global health
About this article
- 🤖 This article is AI-generated, based on a framework created by Peter Schulte.
- 🌍 It aims to be inspirational but clear-eyed, accurate, and evidence-based, and grounded in care for the Earth, peace and belonging for all, and human evolution.
- 💬 Leave your notes and suggestions in the comments below — I will do my best to review and implement where appropriate.
- ✉️ One verified piece of good news, one insight from Antihero Project, every weekday morning. Subscribe free.
