Purpose:
- Review the historical role of swine in medical research with an emphasis on the contributions in interventional radiology
- Examine characteristics of the swine genome and techniques for genome manipulation for the generation of transgenic pigs to model human disease.
- Describe the advantages of transgenic swine as a more precise genetic and anatomic model for human disease.
Background:
Swine as an anatomic and physiologic model of human disease dates back to the studies of the Greek physician Galen in the second century. Since that time, pigs have made many contributions to medicine including the production of insulin and as a source of biologic heart valve replacements. In the field of interventional radiology, pigs have contributed to the development of procedures and medical devices including aortic stent placement, IVC filters and thermal ablation devices. With the draft of the swine genome and improving tools to manipulate the genome we are entering an era where customized swine models of human disease can be efficiently produced.
In this educational exhibit, we will present examples of anatomic and physiologic similarities to humans. We will further review previous studies utilizing the pig model in interventional radiology. Additionally, we will discuss the genetic similarity between swine and humans and the generation of transgenic pigs to model human disease. Finally, we will examine the potential advantages of incorporating transgenic pigs into interventional radiology research as an animal model that recapitulates human disease anatomically, physiologically and genetically.
Conclusion:
Swine have been used as a model for human anatomy and physiology for centuries in the study of human disease. The size and anatomic similarity to humans has helped the study of pigs make important contributions to the development of procedures and medical devices in interventional radiology. In the post-genomic era the adoption of transgenic pigs into interventional radiology research will allow the investigator to tailor the model for a more precise representation of human disease.