SOLUTION: Dallas County Community College Organ Transplant Essay

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In a First, Man Receives a Heart from a Genetically Altered Pig – The New York Times

THE NEW ERA OF ORGAN TRANSPLANT: GENETIC
ENGINEERING
Biology in the News

Rabin, R. (2022). In a First, Man Receives a Heart from a Genetically Altered Pig. The New York Times.
https://www.nytimes.com/2022/01/10/health/heart-transplant-pig-bennett.html

1/5

In a First, Man Receives a Heart from a Genetically Altered Pig – The New York Times

For the first month of the year 2022, a newsworthy accomplishment in the medical field has made
its way to global headlines. In a New York Times article, entitled In a First, Man Receives a Heart from a
Genetically Altered Pig, written by Roni Caryn Rabin, it is the first success to have a man receive a heart
from a genetically modified pig. Xenotransplantation has been a part of medical history in humans in
which there were various achievements but so far, the longest time a recipient has lived was nine (9)
months. Dr. Klassen, a transplant physician, said that this turning point of being the first in heart
xenotransplantation is not actually a full achievement but rather a small win since there will be possible
cases where obstacles are inevitable such as human rejection to the donated organ. The article included
how the 57-year old who experienced life-threatening heart disease has left with no choice but to resort
to a pig’s heart. As the first forty-eight (48) hours passed without complications, monitoring is still
conducted to watch out for possible infections. It is also emphasized how modified pigs offer advantages
in organ transplants since they can be easily used for genetic manipulations, allowing ample time for
screen tests for infections, and pig donors can provide promptly when a patient is in need, unlike with
human donors. Furthermore, it is greatly emphasized and elaborated in the article how new technologies
such as gene editing and cloning influenced this successful procedure. With the collaboration of Dr.
Griffith and Dr. Mohiuddin, ten (10) modifications have been made where four (4) genes were silenced
in order to prevent aggressive human rejection as well as further growth of the pig donor’s heart after the
transplant. The six (6) human genes were inserted into the pig’s genome, altering its tissues and organs
in order to avoid rejection from the human immune system.

As a timely correlation, having general or in-depth knowledge about the foundation of genetic
engineering will help understand the article topic. In which the foundation of genetic engineering is the
application of recombinant DNA technology to alter or modify the target organism. Hence, to appreciate
the essence of this technology, basic knowledge about DNA and other related concepts must be
understood first. With the introduction of DNA as one of the focus of the laboratory report this semester,
familiarization with the topic is strengthened and further supported the idea along with its advantages to
various scientific techniques such as gene cloning and genetic engineering. Which involves taking out or
inserting pieces of DNA from one organism to another (target organism).

The topics, especially the main topic, elaborated in the article are personally interesting. Since I
am well aware of the imbalance between the transplant patients and the number of available human
donors. Having advancement in this medical specialty is quite an achievement in human history. Although
it’s still a long shot, a small win is worth celebrating and exploring. It has somehow changed my skepticism
about implanting an animal organ into humans since I strongly believe that we do have some
incompatibility between us and animals, especially the physiological aspects that can negatively affect
us. In addition, the procedure involved in the scientific technique gave me an additional general idea of
how genetic engineering works.

2/5

In a First, Man Receives a Heart from a Genetically Altered Pig – The New York Times

In a First, Man Receives a Heart From a Genetically Altered Pig
The breakthrough may lead one day to new supplies of animal organs for transplant into human
patients.
By Roni Caryn Rabin
Jan. 10, 2022

A 57-year-old man with life-threatening heart disease has received a heart from a genetically
modified pig, a groundbreaking procedure that offers hope to hundreds of thousands of patients
with failing organs.
It is the first successful transplant of a pig’s heart into a human being. The eight-hour operation
took place in Baltimore on Friday, and the patient, David Bennett Sr. of Maryland, was doing well
on Monday, according to surgeons at the University of Maryland Medical Center.
“It creates the pulse, it creates the pressure, it is his heart,” said Dr. Bartley Griffith, the director of
the cardiac transplant program at the medical center, who performed the operation.
“It’s working and it looks normal. We are thrilled, but we don’t know what tomorrow will bring us.
This hasnever been done before.”
Last year, some 41,354 Americans received a transplanted organ, more than half of them receiving
kidneys,according to the United Network for Organ Sharing, a nonprofit that coordinates the
nation’s organ procur…