(Knowable Magazine) – Can genetically modified animals help ease the shortage of organs? After years of research into xenotransplantation, the field is at a turning point — yet risks and ethical issues remain.

Over the past few years, a handful of people in the United States and China have received specially modified pig kidneys, hearts and livers, but getting those organs to function safely in a person is a huge challenge, as laid out in the 2024 Annual Review of Animal Biosciences. Now, thanks to technological and medical advances, United Therapeutics, in Silver Spring, Maryland, is starting the first official clinical trials of xenotransplantation, and many researchers believe the procedure could eventually become routine.

Yet there are ongoing questions, including risks that pig organs will transmit viruses to people, and a number of ethical concerns. Here’s a look at the state of play and what may lie ahead. (Read More)