xenotransplantation

the word that cannot be said

xenotransplantationxenotransplantationxenotransplantation

What is it?

• Xenotransplantation is the transplantation of cells, tissues or organs from one species to another, particularly transplants from animals to humans.

• It was formulated to overcome the shortage of donor organs.

Problems

• Immune rejection- sometimes the body rejects the organ.

• It has the potential for infectious diseases to spread from the donor animal, which is called xenozoonosis.

• One example is porcine endogenous retroviruses (PERVs) which are viruses within pigs that pigs are immune to, but can infect humans.

Moral Issues• Pigs will just be created and kept in an

artificial environment which is distressing for them.

• Animal rights groups strongly oppose killing animals in order to harvest their organs for human use.

• Jewish and Muslim beliefs may become a problem due to prohibitions in the faiths.

• After the organs have been removed, the animal is often in a lot of pain so is killed.

Advantages

• It saves human lives.• It solves donor organ shortage.

Sorry about this horrible picture, Sarah made us use it.

Alternatives

• Increasing the number of people who carry donor cards.

• Clarifying the laws on organ donation.

• Live donation.• Make better medicine so organs are

not needed.

The End

Yay!

Annabananabel Clay, Mub Cleveland, Fatbeyan Johnson