Biotechnology

Spare parts for the sick," says Bruce Lahn, professor of human genetics at the University of Chicago in the US. "I expect the most exciting advancement in medicine will be the discovery of a method for obtaining new organs for transplantation that will provide enough for every patient without requiring a donor. This could be achieved by growing human organs in animals, such as pigs. When a patient needed a new organ, say a kidney, a surgeon would call a commercial organ-growing company and order a new one, one that matched the patient's immune profile. The manufacturer would likely have several pigs in stock with kidneys that would match the patient's tissues. The best animals for this remain to be seen. It's possible that, to achieve the best results, we'll use different species to grow different organs. Growing a single organ seems impossible—the human brain is the one in question." Few people would want to have their own brain replaced by an alien one, and it is doubtful that we would ever want to grow human brains in animal bodies.