Technology companies are capitalizing on the unusual science of organ preservation.

      Gene-edited pig livers, synthetic embryos, and 3D-printed tissue implants… the field of organ transplantation is turning increasingly unconventional as researchers investigate advanced techniques to extend human life.

      These initiatives are generating new business prospects. One company benefiting from this trend is OrganOx, a spinout from the University of Oxford, which recently secured $142 million in funding to support its growth in the U.S. while contemplating a possible IPO.

      OrganOx’s Metra device circulates oxygenated blood and nutrients through the liver, replicating the natural conditions of a transplant. This allows the organ to remain healthier for up to 12 additional hours compared to traditional methods, providing doctors with extra time to find an appropriate recipient and enhancing transplant success rates. So far, this technology has been utilized in over 5,000 transplant procedures.

      OrganOx is not alone in transforming organ preservation, a procedure that has depended on static cold storage for many years.

      In the U.S., Paragonix Technologies has created a transportation device for organs that maintains them by cooling and pumping a specialized preservation solution through them. This process helps keep the organ cells alive and minimizes damage during transport or storage, ensuring the organ remains suitable for transplant. This technology attracted the attention of Swedish medical equipment giant Getinge, which acquired Paragonix for $477 million last year.

      In addition, U.S. biotech scaleup eGenesis, established in 2015, has raised $456 million to promote xenotransplantation—utilizing CRISPR gene-editing techniques to develop human-compatible organs sourced from pigs. Indeed, pig organs are being considered for human transplants.

      Last year, surgeons at the University of Pennsylvania successfully connected one of eGenesis’ genetically modified pig livers to a brain-dead recipient. The organ functioned properly for 72 hours. The team utilized OrganOx’s machine during the transplant procedure. This effort aims to tackle the persistent shortage of human donor organs, potentially saving numerous lives.

      In December 2024, more than 104,000 individuals in the U.S. were on the waiting list for an organ donor, with 17 people dying each day while waiting.

      Craig Marshall, CEO of OrganOx, announced that the company is gearing up to initiate clinical trials for innovative devices intended to aid kidney transplants, alongside advancing its work with genetically engineered pig livers.

      Other companies are pushing the boundaries of organ transplantation into science fiction territory, raising ethical considerations in the process. Renewal Bio, an Israeli startup, is employing advanced stem-cell technology to create synthetic human embryos. The company aims to utilize these embryos—developed in an artificial womb—as a source for harvesting cells and tissues for medical applications, including organ transplants.

      While Renewal Bio emphasizes that these entities are not meant to evolve into human beings, the potential for generating embryos resembling humans raises significant ethical concerns about the limits of scientific experimentation.