Scientists Create Universal Kidney Transplant

In a landmark achievement that could revolutionize regenerative medicine, researchers from Canada and China have developed a "universal" kidney capable of matching any patient, regardless of their blood type,. After more than a decade of research, the team successfully utilized specialized enzymes to convert a donor kidney from blood type A to the universal donor type O,.

The breakthrough addresses a critical shortage in the organ transplant system. Currently, type O patients make up over 50% of waitlists and often wait two to four years longer than others because type O kidneys are in high demand across all blood groups,. While ABO-incompatible transplants are currently possible, the existing process is often expensive, risky, and time-consuming, requiring intense preparation of the recipient’s immune system,.

This new technique, however, focuses on modifying the organ itself. Scientists describe the enzymes as "molecular scissors" that strip away the sugar molecules, or antigens, that act as markers for type A blood,. By removing these markers, the immune system no longer recognizes the organ as foreign—a process Dr. Stephen Withers compares to "removing the red paint from a car and uncovering the neutral primer",.

The team tested this "enzyme-converted O" (ECO) kidney in a human model for the first time by transplanting it into a brain-dead recipient with family consent,. The organ functioned well for several days without immediate "hyperacute" rejection,. Although the kidney began to show signs of its original type A antigens and a mild immune response by the third day, researchers noted the reaction was less severe than expected,.

While the technology is still in its early stages, it offers a path toward dramatically reducing wait times and increasing the pool of available organs from deceased donors,. Future steps involve clinical trials and regulatory approvals to determine if standard immunosuppression can manage the long-term reappearance of antigens,. For the 11 people who die each day in the U.S. alone while waiting for a kidney, this advancement represents a significant edge closer to real-world impact,.

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Scientists Created a 'Universal' Kidney To Match Any Blood Type

Scientists convert a kidney from blood type A to universal type O and implant it in a brain-dead recipient

Scientists Create One Kidney That Can Match Any Patient, No Matter The Blood Type

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Keywords: Universal Kidney Transplant

Universal Kidney Transplant

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