As mentioned in the Current Knowledge section, the largest problem facing xenotransplantation is rejection. In order to overcome this barrier, certain modifications are being made to the donor animal. Pig DNA is being altered to include human elements that make their organs more likely to be accepted by the human recipient.
For example, pig genomes have been altered so that their tissues express human complement regulatory factors (CRF) (Hansen et al., 2004). This helps to ensure that the transplanted organ won’t be attacked by the recipients immune system because the human antibodies are tricked into recognizing the foreign body as its own. At the same time, the pig still expresses its own species specific CRFs so that they don’t reject their own organs (Hansen et al., 2004).
Is this genetic engineering a violation of the animal’s telos? Bernard Rollins advocates for an animal’s right to live as nature dictates, but by changing a pigs genetic structure, are we changing what it means to be a “pig”?
If so, is there a point at which an animal has acquired enough human DNA that it ought to have human rights?