Allergic to meat only vegetarian?

The gene-edited pig "GalSafe Pig" developed by the US medical company Revivicor was approved by the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) on December 14, and can be used both for consumption and for the production of medical products

In addition, "GalSafe pigs" can also be used to produce drugs similar to heparin, and its tissues and organs may also potentially solve the problem of immune rejection in patients receiving xenotransplantation

"The approval of 'GalSafe pig' marks the first time that a gene-edited animal has achieved dual uses for food and medicine

Several gene-edited animals have been approved for sale

The first approval of a genetically modified animal for both food and potential biomedical use is a huge milestone in scientific innovation

This is the first time the FDA has approved a genome alteration in an animal for human food consumption and potential therapeutic use

Which gene-edited animals have also been approved for marketing in the United States and other countries? Jiang Tao pointed out that there are currently several types of gene-edited animals approved by developed countries in foreign biotechnology

In 2014, the FDA approved a gene-edited rabbit that could be used to produce a drug for hereditary angioedema

"In 2015, gene-edited chickens developed by the Roslin Institute in Cambridge, UK, which can make recombinant protein drugs in eggs, received FDA approval for the treatment of human genetic diseases that cannot degrade fat in cells, the same year, growth rate and return on feed The gene-edited salmon, which is significantly better than ordinary Atlantic salmon, has become the first gene-edited animal approved for consumption by the FDA and relevant Canadian authorities

Remove the corresponding gene to truly prevent allergies

GalSafe means galactose safe, and "GalSafe pig" is named after the lack of "α-galactose" molecules on the surface of body cells

Alpha-galactose is only found in mammals, but not humans

Why can only allergies be prevented by knocking out related genes, but can't allergies be avoided by cooking? In this regard, Jiang Tao explained that some foods cause allergies after human consumption, indicating that there are allergen molecules or parts in the food that bind to special immune receptors in human small intestinal epidermal cells, triggering a type of acute stress response

"This allergic combination has often been partially digested by various digestive enzymes in the gastrointestinal tract, gastric juice, pancreatic juice and intestinal juice, etc.

Tang Bo, a Ph.

The rearing conditions of "GalSafe pigs" are much stricter than those of traditional pigs.

Medical gene-edited animals are irreplaceable

Since the birth of the first gene-edited mouse in the early 1980s, gene-editing technology has developed rapidly, and gene-edited cattle, sheep, fish, and insects have appeared one after another

The FDA also said that any agency or institute must seek further FDA approval before using "GalSafe pigs" for new drugs or human implants

Although "GalSafe pig" is not the first gene-edited animal approved for marketing, it is the first time that gene-edited animals have been approved for both food and medical purposes
.
So, which is more important to study gene-edited animals, edible or medical?

"The specific problem is analyzed in detail, and it cannot be simply compared which is more important
.
At present, there are more researches on medical genetically modified animals, which are mainly used for the production of recombinant protein drugs, human disease models, xenogeneic organ donors, etc.

The genetically modified 'GalSafe pig' It can be used to produce pork products that are not allergic to people with α-galactose syndrome, and more importantly, to produce medical products that are not prone to immune rejection, such as extracting drugs from pigs, xenotransplanted organs, cells and other products
.
" Tang Bo said
.

Because it does not contain detectable galactose, "GalSafe pigs" may be used as a blood thinner - a raw material for medical products such as heparin
.
Tissues and organs from "GalSafe pigs" also have the potential to solve the problem of immune rejection in xenograft patients, as alpha-galactose is thought to be one of the reasons for rejection in patients
.

Jiang Tao pointed out that gene-edited animals have important value for both food and medical use, and medical use is an irreplaceable new use
.

"Because our food animals have now achieved intensive feeding, the cost is close to the ceiling, and the current genetic modification can improve the return on feed, lean meat rate, disease resistance, etc.

For medical use, especially the special gene-edited pigs are used as xenotransplantation organs.
Once successfully realized, it is expected to completely reverse the current shortage of organs used to treat death caused by human organ failure and save the lives of a large number of patients
.
" Jiang Tao said
.