ChemistryKid (imported) wrote: Wed Feb 14, 2007 3:42 pm
Even better, it says that they can actually do an ovary transplant from one person to another! I can't imagine that it would be more difficult to do a testicle transplant, and that means that testicle transplants are possible today!
Double Cross (
http://www.eunuch.org/Alpha/D/new1doublecross.htm), one of my favorite stories, involves a testicle transplant, so this is great news.
Just remember, according to the article, the people involved were sisters (already somewhat genetically similar), where one had provided bone marrow to the recipient of the ovary (thereby reducing/eliminating rejection issues).
The other cases mentioned involved identical twins, where rejection issues are not usually a factor.
For this to work on testicles, not only would the microsurgery issues need to be further resolved, but the donor would have to be a near-identical match genetically. This means likely at worst, a sibling with the same parents, and at best an identical twin.
Yes, they transplant other organs between non-related people all the time. The recipient pretty much winds up taking anti-rejection drugs for the rest of their life, however. If the side effects of chemical castration, or physical castration, worry you then take a look at the side effects of those drugs.
Rather than going through all that, it would be a heck of a lot easier to just use somatic cells from the father to fertilize an egg donated by the mother. Of course, we are a bit away from practical application of that as well.