As discussed in class there is a great deal of debate surrounding the genetically modified movement all throughout the world. It is clear that there are both benefits and drawbacks to genetically modified food; however, genetic modification may have implications in other areas, namely turning livestock into organ donors.
Today there are 120,000 people in the United States waiting for an organ transplant, while the number of donors is significantly lower. Therefore, scientists are experimenting with a transplant process called Xenotransplantation, where animal organs are transplanted into humans. In particular, pigs are the most promising donors as their vital organs are similar in size to humans.
Scientists can use the gene-editing technology called Crispr-Cas9 in order to modify gene expression to increase compatibility with humans. A segment of RNA is modified to form an excising RNA protein called Cas9. The Cas9 protein then searches the DNA double helix for a complementary base pair as in the translation process. Once the Cas9 complex finds the complementary base the complex cuts the double helix in order to add the new genetic material. This technique can be used on different chromosome loci to cause pigs and humans to be more compatible.
The technique is fairly new coming out of Harvard just last year, and speeds up the process allowing for multiple simultaneous changes at once. Head of the study and company EGenesis Bio, Luhan Yang has already used the pioneering Crispr method to create pig embryos that inactivate pig retroviruses, a huge obstacle for Xenotransplantation in the past. The company seeks to have genetically modified pigs to begin trials just next year. Although not discussed in the article, it is important to think about concerns of animal cruelty as well as whether these genetically grown or modified embryos are in fact pigs.
Source: http://www.wsj.com/articles/potent-fix-for-transplant-shortage-genetically-modified-pigs-1480604400
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