The Stem Cell Podcast

Ep. 86: “Human-Pig Chimera” Featuring Dr. Jun Wu

Feb 28, 2017
Guest
Jun Wu
Dr. Jun Wu, a developmental biologist at the Salk Institute who studies interspecies chimerism, joins to discuss human–pig chimera research. He explains what chimeras are and why pigs are chosen. He covers CRISPR-created host niches, differences between naive and primed stem cells, ethical safeguards, and next steps to boost human cell contribution in pigs.
Ask episode
AI Snips
Chapters
Transcript
Episode notes
ANECDOTE

Long Lived Rat Mouse Chimeras With Functional Donor Cells

  • Rat→mouse chimeras produced viable adults and even two-year-old chimeric animals with functional donor-derived tissues.
  • Wu described rat cells contributing up to ~10% in heart of an older chimera while liver contribution remained extremely low.
ADVICE

Use Zygote Gene Editing To Create Developmental Niches

  • Use embryo zygote gene editing to create niche vacancies and enrich donor cell contribution rather than waiting years to make mutant host lines via ESCs.
  • Jun Wu used CRISPR-Cas9 in zygotes to disable organ development and complemented with donor PSCs to enrich organs like pancreas.
INSIGHT

Evolutionary Distance Creates A Major Chimerism Barrier

  • Evolutionary distance strongly limits donor cell contribution: rat→mouse chimerism reached up to ~20–25%, while human→pig contribution was roughly 1 in 100,000 cells at 3–4 weeks.
  • Low human contribution suggests technical and biological species barriers that must be lowered for organ generation in pigs.
Get the Snipd Podcast app to discover more snips from this episode
Get the app