3 ms·

It's impossible for me to see this as anything but an amazing development. But the sentient-pig SF horror genre pretty much writes itself.

whythre 3y ago
… does it? It’s a kidney, not a brain. Brain transplants from a pig seem like a pretty obviously bad idea.
- quesera 3y ago
  Sorry, overcomplicating English syntax: The ... SF horror genre, as written by sentient pigs ... pretty much writes itself.
- egorfine 3y ago
  But you never know until you try.
  - selcuka 3y ago
    You meant until the pig tries. A brain transplant is a misnomer, it's actually a body transplant.
- BizarroLand 3y ago
  Some people are injecting BDNF from pig brains into themselves, and early insulin came from pigs as well. Hopefully this works or if there are issues they are minor. https://www.alzdiscovery.org/cognitive-vitality/ratings/cerebrolysin https://www.alzdiscovery.org/cognitive-vitality/ratings/cere...
adamredwoods 3y ago
Quite amazing! Doubtful we'll see any Animal Farm animals. The modified genes are for mostly endothelial modifications. >> The Yucatan miniature pig breed was chosen because its organ sizes are comparable to human organs28. In addition, pigs with OO blood type were selected to eliminate ABO blood-type incompatibilities29. >> The pigs were engineered to carry 69 genomic edits, using the clustered regularly interspaced short palindromic repeats (CRISPR) and CRISPR-associated protein 9 (Cas9)-mediated nonhomologous end joining and homology-directed repair30,31, and recombinase-mediated cassette exchange. https://www.nature.com/articles/s41586-023-06594-4 https://www.nature.com/articles/s41586-023-06594-4
kurthr 3y ago
Oh, where the sentient pigs have set this all up, but for reverse kidney transplants from humans to pigs, and we pay for it?
PlunderBunny 3y ago
I remember reading online a short sci-fi piece where people keep their own generically engineered pigs for spare parts, and the main character develops an affection for the animal (that is smart enough to almost talk). The story ends with him needing a transplant, and sitting in the mud with the pig, contemplating the choice he has before him. Edit: In a more 'realistic' scenario, capitalism would ensure we were more remote from the ethical consequences of our consumerism.
- kelipso 3y ago
  You should read Never Let Me Go.
andrewflnr 3y ago
As others mentioned, there's no particular reason for the brain to be involved. But that didn't stop Alastair Reynolds from writing sentient pigs into the later sequels to Revelation Space, with that exact backstory. One of them is a major character in The Prefect (or whatever they renamed it to).

whythre 3y ago

… does it? It’s a kidney, not a brain. Brain transplants from a pig seem like a pretty obviously bad idea.

quesera 3y ago
Sorry, overcomplicating English syntax: The ... SF horror genre, as written by sentient pigs ... pretty much writes itself.
egorfine 3y ago
But you never know until you try.
- selcuka 3y ago
  You meant until the pig tries. A brain transplant is a misnomer, it's actually a body transplant.
BizarroLand 3y ago
Some people are injecting BDNF from pig brains into themselves, and early insulin came from pigs as well. Hopefully this works or if there are issues they are minor. https://www.alzdiscovery.org/cognitive-vitality/ratings/cerebrolysin https://www.alzdiscovery.org/cognitive-vitality/ratings/cere...

adamredwoods 3y ago

Quite amazing! Doubtful we'll see any Animal Farm animals. The modified genes are for mostly endothelial modifications. >> The Yucatan miniature pig breed was chosen because its organ sizes are comparable to human organs28. In addition, pigs with OO blood type were selected to eliminate ABO blood-type incompatibilities29. >> The pigs were engineered to carry 69 genomic edits, using the clustered regularly interspaced short palindromic repeats (CRISPR) and CRISPR-associated protein 9 (Cas9)-mediated nonhomologous end joining and homology-directed repair30,31, and recombinase-mediated cassette exchange. https://www.nature.com/articles/s41586-023-06594-4 https://www.nature.com/articles/s41586-023-06594-4

kurthr 3y ago

Oh, where the sentient pigs have set this all up, but for reverse kidney transplants from humans to pigs, and we pay for it?

PlunderBunny 3y ago

I remember reading online a short sci-fi piece where people keep their own generically engineered pigs for spare parts, and the main character develops an affection for the animal (that is smart enough to almost talk). The story ends with him needing a transplant, and sitting in the mud with the pig, contemplating the choice he has before him. Edit: In a more 'realistic' scenario, capitalism would ensure we were more remote from the ethical consequences of our consumerism.

kelipso 3y ago
You should read Never Let Me Go.

andrewflnr 3y ago

As others mentioned, there's no particular reason for the brain to be involved. But that didn't stop Alastair Reynolds from writing sentient pigs into the later sequels to Revelation Space, with that exact backstory. One of them is a major character in The Prefect (or whatever they renamed it to).