Physicians at the University of Maryland School of Medicine say the 57-year-old man who died after receiving a pig’s heart transplant was infected with a virus pigs can carry.
“The disclosure bolsters one of the most pressing objections to animal-to-human transplants, which is that widespread use of modified animal organs may facilitate the introduction of new pathogens into the human population,” The New York Times said.
The pig had been genetically altered to avoid transplant rejection and had been screened for the virus; the only problem was that the screening only detects active viruses, not latent ones. Doctors knew 20 days after the transplant that the patient was infected, but also suspected the positive test could have been a lab error.
They now believe the infection may have contributed to the man’s death.
SOURCE:
The New York Times May 5, 2022