New york: Scientists have achieved a groundbreaking milestone by keeping a genetically modified pig kidney functioning inside a brain-dead man for a record 61 days, successfully reversing two rejection episodes, as revealed in two papers published in Nature.

According to Anadolu Agency, the findings provide valuable insights into preventing immune attacks in future transplants involving both animal and human donors. The recipient, a 57-year-old man on life support, received the pig kidney along with the animal's thymus, a gland crucial for training the immune system.

The procedure, conducted last year at NYU Langone Health, represents the longest duration a pig organ has functioned in a human body following transplantation. The organ began to work immediately post-surgery but showed signs of failure on day 33. Physicians were able to restore its function through a combination of plasma exchange, steroids, and a complement-blocking drug. A subsequent rejection episode, driven by T cells, was successfully managed with immunosuppressants.

In recent years, approximately a dozen patients have received organs from genetically modified pigs, yet most transplants have failed due to the human immune system's rapid attack on the foreign tissue. Researchers highlight that understanding which immune cells react and devising methods to inhibit them is crucial for advancing xenotransplantation, the practice of transplanting animal organs into humans.