In a medical first, researchers have successfully transplanted a kidney converted from blood type A to the universal type O, removing one of the greatest barriers in organ donation. The procedure was led by Dr. Turun Song at West China Hospital in partnership with the University of British Columbia and Vancouver-based Avivo Biomedical.
Using enzymes originally discovered at UBC, Avivo converted the kidney before transplanting it into a mismatched recipient. “This is the first time a type A kidney has been successfully converted and transplanted,” said Avivo CEO John Coleman. The breakthrough, published in Nature Biomedical Engineering, could save countless lives.
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