Two US biotech companies say the Food and Drug Administration has cleared them to conduct clinical trials of their gene-edited pig kidneys for human transplants.

United Therapeutics along with another company, eGenesis, have been working since 2021 on experiments implanting pig kidneys into humans: initially brain-dead patients and more recently living recipients.

Advocates hope the approach will help address the severe organ shortage. More than 100,000 people in the United States are awaiting transplants, including over 90,000 in need of kidneys.

United Therapeutics’s approval, announced Monday, allows the company to advance its technology toward a licensed product if the trial succeeds.

The study authorization was hailed as a “significant step forward in our relentless mission to expand the availability of transplantable organs,” by Leigh Peterson, the company’s executive vice president.

The trial will initially enroll six patients with the end-stage renal disease before expanding to as many as 50, United Therapeutics said in a statement. The first transplant is expected in mid-2025.

Meanwhile, rival eGenesis said it had received FDA approval in December for a separate three-patient kidney study.

“The study will evaluate patients with kidney failure who are listed for a transplant but who face a low probability of receiving a deceased donor offer within a five-year timeframe,” the company said.

Xenotransplantation — transplanting organs from one species to another — has been a tantalizing yet elusive goal for science.

Early experiments in primates faltered, but advances in gene editing and immune system management have brought the field closer to reality.

Pigs have emerged as ideal donors: they grow quickly, produce large litters, and are already part of the human food supply.

United Therapeutics said trial patients would be monitored for life, assessing survival rates, kidney function, and the risk of zoonotic infections — diseases that jump from animals to humans.

Currently, there is only one living human recipient of a pig organ: Towana Looney, a 53-year-old from Alabama who received a United Therapeutics kidney on November 25, 2024.

She is also the longest-surviving recipient, having lived with a pig kidney for 71 days as of Tuesday. David Bennett of Maryland received a pig heart in 2022 and survived 60 days.

The Swiss government said Thursday it aimed to overhaul its law on medically-assisted reproduction to legalise egg donations and give broader access to sperm donations.

Currently egg donations are not allowed and only married couples can access sperm donations.

The Swiss parliament has long said it wants to change that, and has asked the government with coming up with a proposal to provide broader access.

A government statement said it had “decided to completely revise the law on medically assisted reproduction in order to adapt it to the current context” and had asked the interior ministry to draft a proposed law by the end of next year.

The government said it wants to legalise egg donations in cases where a woman in a couple is infertile, as a parallel to the already legal use of sperm donations in cases of male sterility.

Bern said its priority was “the protection of donors and the welfare of the child”, stressing that “this protection cannot be guaranteed if parents resort to egg donation abroad”.

The government also said it wanted to expand access to both egg and sperm donation to unmarried couples.

After Switzerland legalised same-sex marriage in 2022, married lesbian couples have also had access to sperm donations.

But the government said the current law barring unmarried couples from access to such medically assisted reproduction was “outdated and no longer corresponds to social reality”.

The Oyo State Ministry of Health has closed two hospitals in Saki West Local Government Area following a suspected outbreak of Lassa fever, which has claimed four lives.

The fatalities, confirmed by the Oyo State Rapid Response Team (RRT), include three males and a 32-year-old female who was preparing for her wedding. The closure of the hospitals aims to contain the spread of the disease and ensure thorough decontamination.

In a press statement issued by the Commissioner for Information and Orientation, Dotun Oyelade, the State Commissioner for Health, Dr. Oluwaserimi Ajetunmobi, revealed that the RRT was dispatched to Saki following distress calls from residents reporting mysterious deaths.

Findings and Immediate Actions

The RRT, comprising health officials, representatives from WHO and the Red Cross, and local health authorities, conducted a comprehensive investigation into the outbreak.

Preliminary findings suggest that an apprentice at one of the affected hospitals, who had recently returned from Iwajowa Local Government Area, might have introduced the infection.

The team disclosed that the deceased exhibited symptoms consistent with Lassa fever, such as craniofacial bleeding. The hospital owner, who was among the deceased, initially self-medicated with antimalarials and antibiotics before seeking hospital care when his condition worsened.

Containment Measures

Both the hospital where the fatalities occurred and the facility that admitted the hospital owner were shut down for decontamination.

Contact tracing efforts are ongoing, focusing on high-risk individuals who had contact with the deceased during their illness or burial.

Affected health workers were trained on Infection Prevention and Control (IPC) protocols, and public awareness campaigns were conducted to educate residents about Lassa fever.

Samples have been collected from a symptomatic individual, pending laboratory confirmation. Line-listing of contacts is underway to identify potential cases and prevent further spread.

Collaborative Efforts

The RRT also paid an advocacy visit to the Okere of Saki’s palace to brief traditional authorities on the situation. Local government officials in Saki West were engaged to coordinate containment strategies.

Reports indicate that while the outbreak initially affected Saki West, it has extended to Iwajowa and Kajola Local Government Areas.

Disease Surveillance and Notification Officers (DSNOs) in the affected LGAs have been instructed to commence preliminary containment measures as the State RRT ramps up its response.

Call for Vigilance

The Ministry of Health has urged residents to remain vigilant, report any symptoms suggestive of Lassa fever, and adhere to preventive measures.

These include proper hygiene practices, avoiding contact with rodents, and seeking medical attention promptly if symptoms arise.