Animals and Use of Them in Transplantation - Report Example

Animals and Use of Them in Transplantation 28 October 2 October Animals and Use of Them in Transplantation Introduction Transplantation is a necessary medical procedure used to replace failed organs or tissues. Previously, transplantation was problematic because of issues with rejection and infections of the organs. However, nowadays organ transplantation is the treatment of choice owing to the development of immunosuppressive drugs. Animals have been considered as a potential source of these organs through a process called xenotransplantation, but technology is yet to fully develop. Challenges in the technical implementation of the procedure and ethical issues involving animals have also arisen. Animals in transplants and their implications Estimates show that organ transplants increase the likelihood of survival for patients; kidneys take up the highest percentage. In certain cases like heart failure, transplantation is the only way out for these patients. While some individuals have had less successful procedures, some cases have been documented of patients who have lived for as long as 20 years with their new organs (Platt and Cascalho 182). Transplantation is highly advantageous because not only does it extend life, but it also improves quality of life. Kidney transplants are particularly attractive because they provide a superior treatment option to dialysis. The latter procedure is expensive, ineffective, uncomfortable, and never restores health, yet the exact opposite is true for transplants. Cases have also been documented of heart patients who have been able to climb hills and engage in other extreme activities after receiving transplants. The demand for organs currently exceeds the capacity to supply them. Usually most transplants emanate from donors. Some of them may be brain dead after involvement in accidents; others might have died but their kidneys could be removed shortly after. Living donors exist for the bone marrow, kidneys, and some part of the liver. Since there are several restrictions on the ability to use organs from living persons or those who have just died, a shortage exists for them. In several countries around the world, waiting lists are in the thousands, so an alternative source of organs is required. Heart failure patients are in the worst condition because they have no other means of receiving effective treatment. Many have to remain in waiting lists since even getting a suitable donor could be problematic (Van der Windt Dirk et. al. 3050) Several strategies have been suggested to deal with these shortages. Preventive measures like policy alterations could be an alternative. This may involve solutions for avoidable problems like heart failure; obesity prevention is one such strategy. Artificial organs can also be used after bioengineering them from animal and human materials. However, this alternative still has to overcome a series of technical hurdles. Xenotransplantation or the use of animal organs/ tissue for transplantation holds a lot of promise as it could bridge the gap between supply and demand for these parts. To a certain degree, pig heart valves have been applied in human heart surgery for over 4 decades. However, no scientist has yet been successful in transplanting animal organs into human beings. The best known case was a kidney patient who used a chimpanzee’s kidney but only lived for 9 months. The greatest challenge with direct implantation of animal organs into human beings is the issue of immune system rejection. Pigs and higher primates have been used for this very purpose. Currently, scientists have found a way of transplanting hearts from pigs to baboons, with the former animals being genetically engineered. This breakthrough process was achieved recently and was made possible by administering immune suppressive drugs to the recipients (Platt and Cascalho 176). Additionally, it was also facilitated by genetically engineering the pigs in order to eliminate those genes that cause tissue rejection. Pigs were ideal donor animals owing to their close similarity to humans as well as their ability to mature quickly. In the latest research, the scientists did not modify the circulatory system in the monkeys; they instead connected the donor hearts from the pigs into their own circulatory systems. The recipient baboons survived for 1 year and 135 days. Several trials still have to be done on monkeys before transplants from animals are used on humans. This will only be possible after continued success in animal subjects. Even if the latter were to happen, there would still be the challenge of ensuring that the organs from the donor animals carry out all the required functions that their natural human organs performed. Supporters of the procedure affirm that xenotransplantation could be the best way of eliminating this shortage because it could provide a series of tissues and organs for transplantation. These advocates claim that animals could minimize health declines and also reduce loss of life that occurs due to long waiting lists (even the associated anxieties linked with being on waiting lists can be reduced). The careful matching of donor and recipient organs would be a thing of the past if animals are genetically engineered to become a source of the same as tissue rejection will have been overcome. Currently, medical representatives often have to consult relatives of recently dead individuals in order to get organ donations. This not only heightens emotional stress for them but also creates some resource constraints. Medical practitioners rarely have enough time to prepare for operations when this method is used. Animal organs would eradicate this problem as all members of the chain would be able to coordinate or administer their efforts before surgery (Van der Windt Dirk et. al. 3050). Additionally, because of the current shortage of human organs, it has now become common for people to buy and sell kidneys. Some unethical procedures are taking place in certain parts of the world to get these scarce components. If a ready source of organs was available from animals, there would be no need for man to engage in such practices (Van der Windt Dirk et. al. 3054). Despite the above possibilities, some ethical challenges still exist concerning the use of animals for transplantation. It raises the issue of utilizing animals for man’s exclusive needs. Even though animals have been used in medicine in the past, their application in these procedures may cause death of the animals. Some have stated that this is a human-centric view of the world; it reduces animals to means rather than ends in themselves. Animal welfare concerns have also been raised concerning their well-being as these procedures take place. Owing to the above reasons, scientists have established codes of practices required in order to safeguard animal welfare during xenotransplantation research. The first among these is to ensure that the research is justified; they must also treat animals with consideration and respect. Quantities of animals should also be minimized in order to eliminate undue risks. Some of the ways in which these objectives can be achieved is through proper transportation arrangements during the research. These strategies should be combined with husbandry and housing care through provision of the proper diet and catering to the social wellbeing of the animals. Post and pre-surgery care through pain killers, immunosuppression and anesthetics should be administered. Even selection of the right species should be done in order to minimize impact among animals. Potential dangers also exist for human beings who receive organs from animals. It is not possible to predict the infections and diseases that could be transferred from species to species. Sometimes some genes may cause no effect in one animal but lead to immense problems in another. Therefore, some unquantifiable and remote hazards are likely to be introduced into the human population (Van der Windt Dirk et. al. 3047). Length of survival also raises serious concerns as recipients of animal organs may not live for long. To some tenets, it would be unethical to subject animals to loss of life for such measly survival times. Even the social implications of these kinds of procedures have also been objected to. A debate concerning attempts to prolong life through the use of technology has also been raised. Many now question how far man will be willing to go in order to live long. The presence of animal grafts could minimize human being’s willingness to provide organs to those in need, and this may lead to excess reliance on animals (Platt and Cascalho 179). The above concerns are especially relevant to nonhuman primates as they warrant special attention. These primates are intelligent and exhibit complex behavior; they also have social needs that parallel some human mannerisms. Therefore, the use of them for man’s needs have been put into question. Animal welfare advocates object to the use of these species, yet they are the closest to man’s biological makeup. Conclusion Xenotransplantation is a promising procedure for medical conditions involving organ failure as it has the capacity to increase the quantity and quality of life. However, a number of ethical concerns have been brought forward concerning the use of animals in this process. Even though these objections will continue, it is likely that more people will support animal grafts as long as strict ethical procedures are followed. Works Cited Platt, Jeffrey and Marilia Cascalho. “New and old technologies for organ replacement.” Current Opinion in Organ Transplantation 18.2(2013): 179-185. Print. Van der Windt Dirk, Rita Bottino, Goutham Kumar, Martin Wijkstrom, Burcin Ekser, Carol Phelps, Massimo Trucco and David Cooper. “Clinical Islet xenotransplantation.” Diabetes 61.12(2012): 3046-3055. Print. Read More