Farming pigs for organs? This is what scientists say about the race to beat aging
President Xi, Putin, and Kim Jong-Un were all present when a disturbing topic was brought up: living forever.
It sounded like a joke, or the first line in a sequel to Orwell’s 1984.
Whichever it turns out to be, the three-headed hydra of Putin, Xi, and Kim Jong-Un chatting about living forever sent a chill down my spine so hard I had to tighten the loose screws on my chair leg that had been shaken out of place.
Advances in biotechnology, particularly organ transplants, could let humans become younger, or even live forever, with the trio of despot leaders seemingly up to scratch on the science.
Putin’s interpreter put it clearly as they walked almost hand-in-hand: “Biotechnology is continuously developing. Human organs can be continuously transplanted. The longer you live, the younger you become, and [you can] even achieve immortality.”
As medical innovations improve, organs could be replaced continually, potentially reversing aging. Xi smiled, and responded with a wry prediction: “Some predict that in this century humans may live to 150 years old.”
But the scientific community greeted the exchange with a reality check. While organ transplantation today is undeniably lifesaving, particularly for individuals facing organ failure, the risks—such as immune suppression, cancer, infections, and surgical complications—often undermine long-term benefits. Simply put, science is just not there yet.
That’s not to say that frontier research is not taking place: genetically engineered pig organs are being trialled experimentally, and scientists are exploring radical concepts such as creating brainless “body scaffolds” for xenotransplantation. Another avenue involves reprogramming existing organs to resist disease or produce rejuvenating proteins.
The Guardian notes that “in the past year, two living patients have received genetically modified pig kidneys,” adding that the procedures saw scientists “remove harmful pig genes, inactivated viruses lurking in the pig genome that could reawaken and cause infections and, crucially, added human genes to make them more compatible.”
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Soon after the video went viral, Chinese state media requested that the footage be pulled from Reuters: “Chinese state media withdrew legal permission to use the footage and demanded its removal,” wrote the outlet, “A written request from China Central Television’s (CCTV) legal team said Reuters exceeded the usage terms of its agreement and criticised the “editorial treatment applied to this material”, prompting the news agency to remove the footage from its website on Friday." I’ll leave that there.
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