A Spanish scientist managed to grow the world’s first-ever human-monkey hybrid embryo in a laboratory in China which could have been born.
However, the process was aborted.
Scientists genetically modified monkey embryos to deactivate genes that are vital for organ formation. Then, they injected it with human stem cells which are capable of developing tissues.
Even though the experiment is a step towards using animals for human organ transplants, it had to be conducted in China to prevent ‘legal issues.’
The researchers have not yet released their findings but reported the hybrid embryo to El Pais. It was destroyed at two weeks of gestation, a point called the ‘red line’ meaning that it couldn’t develop a central nervous system.
In 2017, Juan Carlos Izpisua Belmonte was also responsible for making the first human pig hybrid. He said his team conducted “the first experiment of human and pig chimeras in the world.”
Pablo Ross University of California veterinarian and Professor Izpisua’s colleague, said: “The human cells did not take hold. We saw that they contributed very little [to the development of the embryo]: one human cell for every 100,000 pig cells.”
The researchers managed to create chimeras between similar species, for instance, the mouse and the rat, which is 5 times closer than pigs and humans.
Project collaborator Estrella Nunez said that the experiment is very promising. “We are now trying not only to move forward and continue experimenting with human cells and rodent and pig cells, but also with non-human primates.
“Our country is a pioneer and a world leader in these investigations.”
The team is now looking to continue experimenting with pig, rodent and human cells, and also with non-human primates.
The researchers have experimented creating human birds with mice and rats, hoping to develop transplantable eyes, pancreases, and hearts.
The director of the Barcelona Regenerative Medicine Center, Angel Raya, said the hybrid experiments have ‘ethical barriers.’
“What happens if the stem cells escape and form human neurons in the brain of the animal?” he asked. “Would it have consciousness? And what happens if these stem cells turn into sperm cells?”
But Nunez said that if any of the stem cells start to form a human brain, they will ‘self destruct.’
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