An embryo was created from human and pig cells. Free Technical Library News

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An embryo created from human and pig cells

26.01.2017

Biologists have proven in practice that human induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs) can integrate into pig embryos and develop normally in them. At the same time, rat stem cells do not take root in pig embryos. The possibility of obtaining chimeric embryos of humans and pigs will make it possible to study the early stages of human development, as well as to obtain donor organs from animals that are closer in characteristics to human ones. The study report is published in the journal Cell.

Experiments with rodent embryos were carried out at the Salk Institute (USA), and experiments with pig embryos were carried out at the University of Murcia (Spain). To begin with, it was necessary to check whether the cells of the selected animals can generally take root in embryos of other species. Since it was already shown in 2010 that rat induced pluripotent stem cells implanted in mouse embryos that are unable to form a pancreas successfully form this organ, the researchers decided, firstly, to repeat such a cell transplant, and secondly, to introduce some number of rat iPSCs in swine embryos. Immunochemical analysis and DNA analysis showed that rat-mouse chimeric embryos are formed quite easily, however, no rat cells were found in pig embryos on the 21-28th day of their development. Chimeras of pigs and rats could not be created.

A similar experiment to create chimeric embryos was carried out using human iPSCs. They, like rats, were planted in the embryos of pigs at the stage when they had the shape of a miniature hollow ball (the blastocyst stage, one of the very first in embryonic development), and then the resulting embryos were introduced into the uterus of pigs. On the 21-28th day of development, cells of human origin were found in 186 out of 1466 embryos. This meant that such embryos were pig-human chimeras.

The time of termination of the experiment (21-28 days from the moment of fertilization) was chosen based on the fact that by this age the nervous system of the pig embryo would not yet have time to properly develop the nervous system. Since human cells were introduced into the embryos, there was a possibility that their presence would affect the formation of the nervous system, and an animal with elements of the human mind would be obtained. Of course, it would be unethical to experiment on such an organism.

The fact that it is possible to create chimeric embryos from pig and human cells has implications for both organ transplantation and basic scientific research. First, thanks to chimeric embryos, it will be possible to obtain donor organs from animals that are closer in characteristics to human ones. The presence of recipient cells in them will allow its immune system to perceive the new organ as its own, that is, it will not be rejected. Secondly, the study of chimeric embryos will provide new information about the early stages of development of human embryos.

Although human embryology has already accumulated a lot of data, many of them are obtained from experiments on animals, since it is forbidden by ethics to carry out similar manipulations with future people.

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