Corneal diseases are a major cause of blindness worldwide. The use of bio-engineered pig cornea in humans is gaining momentum in China due to shortage of human corneal donors and similarities between pig and human corneas. The most recent case is that of a 14-year-old boy who regained his sight after undergoing a successful pig cornea transplant on February 25, 2016 at the Sun Yat-sen University's Zhongshan Ophthalmic Centre in Guangzhou Province.
The teen had injured his right eye with a firecracker during New Year celebrations, and had lost his sight after developing ulcer in his right eye.
Yuan Jin, the doctor who led the operation said, "A week after the transplant, he had regained some vision. In the future his sight may be close to normal."
Known as "Acornea", the pig cornea transplanted to a human is devoid of cells, hybrid proteins, and other antigens. It was accredited by the China Food and Drug Administration last April.
According to Global Times, 114 cornea transplants using pig cornea have been performed in five hospitals across China, of which 109 succeeded.
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