Breakthrough in organ transplants: Scientists convert blood type in kidney

While organ transplants are live-saving, historically it’s been difficult to find a perfect fit – one must get just the right kidney that their body doesn’t reject, with the same blood type (unless it’s from someone with type O). But scientists have had a breakthrough that allows the transfer of kidneys from different blood types to a patient, which means more lives are on the cusp of being saved.

In a study, published in the peer-reviewed journal Nature Biomedical Engineering, researchers have spoken of a successful experiment that saw that removing type A antigens from a donor kidney. This resulted in the blood type being changed to O, which is universally acceptable. The study author Stephen Withers, a chemist at the University of British Columbia in Vancouver, Canada, went on to explain that the new type-O kidney was transplanted into the body of a 68-year-old brain dead person in Chongqing, China. It worked for about two days before showing signs of rejection.

“This is the first time we’ve seen this play out in a human model,” Dr. Stephen Withers of the University of British Columbia, who co-led the enzyme development, was quoted as saying by Reuters. “It gives us invaluable insight into how to improve long-term outcomes.”

Now, the researchers await regulatory approval for clinical trials.