Ten Young Investigators received awards for their best scored abstract at the last IXA meeting. We reached out to the recipients to interview them about their personal experience in the field of xenotransplantation.Some recipients have been pursuing xenotransplantation for close to a decade or longer while others have only more recently been exposed to the field, but all agreed on its importance and are confident that in the not too distant future, xenotransplantation will be a clinical practice. The enthusiasm and level of commitment that they bring to their work is truly inspiring and we would like to take this opportunity to share with our readers some of their thoughts on participating in IXA2019, their careers, and what they see as the future of xenotransplantation. The perspective of these investigators should be interesting to us all because the generation represented by them and their peers will be the one that will see the clinical promise of xenotransplantation fulfilled. Everyone that we reached out to was pleased and eager to discuss his or her stories with us.

We asked how they became interested in the field of xenotransplantation.

Wenlong Huang (University of Alberta, Canada) credits a 2013 visit from Dr. Gina Rayat to Shantou University in China to starting him on his path in xenotransplantation. Chang Ho Yoon (Seoul National University Hospital, South Korea) has been a PhD student under Professor Mee Kum Kim for 3 years researching corneal xenotransplantation. Takayuki Yamamoto (University of Alabama at Birmingham, USA) spoke of his 17-year relationship with Professor Takaaki Kobayashi, a former IXA President, in helping to form his path and providing the opportunity to continue his studies with Dr. David Cooper, another former IXA President. Abdulkadir Isidan (Indiana University, USA) and Angela Chen (Indiana University, USA) were both only introduced to xenotransplantation relatively recently by their mentor Dr. Burcin Ekser, while Raza Ali Naqvi (Indiana University, USA), also a member of the Ekser lab, became involved in the field in 2013 due to the kind efforts of Dr. Bernhard Hering. Prof. Wei Wang brought Xiaoqian Ma (Third Hospital of Central South University, Peoples republic of China) to the study of xenotransplantation giving her early career a direction about 10 years ago, which she then more recently followed with Drs. Wayne Hawthorne and Philip O’Connell at the Centre for Transplant and Renal Research in Sydney. Yuichi Ariyoshi (Columbia University Medical Center, USA) became interested in xenotransplantation by reading an article published by Dr. Kazuhiko Yamada before joining his lab at Columbia several years later, while Kazuhiro Takeuchi (Columbia University Medical Center, USA) was encouraged by his mentor to join the Yamada lab around the same time.

The success of our award recipients shines a light on the crucial roles of their mentors in introducing them to the study of xenotransplantation, encouraging them, and providing support and friendship that allows them to grow and flourish in their careers and lives. We should all remember the value of these relationships not only to our students but to mentors as well.

What were their thoughts on receiving the TTS-IXA Scientific Congress Awards during IXA2019 Munich?

The Award Recipients were honored and humbled to see that the xenotransplantation community respected their hard work and dedication. This was actually the second time that Wenlong was so honored (as he also received recognition in Baltimore, 2017). The Young Investigators were unanimous to point out that their recognition was actually directed to the Investigators and Lab groups that surround each of them, working together towards common goals. Receiving the award also inspires and motivates them to further investigations. Of course, receiving an award is a memorable experience but the IXA Congress provided many other opportunities as well.

We asked where they saw themselves and the field of xenotransplantation in 10 years.

Our respondents looked into their crystal balls to see a bright future for xenotransplantation (including advancements in GE pigs and immunosuppression) and rewarding career paths for themselves.

Wenlong envisions his career as a clinical doctor and researcher with interest in xenotransplantation. Chang Ho looks to continue the cornea research of his group, possibly by incorporating GE pigs. Takayuki wants to follow in the footsteps of Dr. Cooper as an academic surgeon, responsible for clinical organ allotransplantation as well as xenotransplantation research. He believes that pig kidney and heart transplantation will be established in the next decade. Kadir sees xenotransplantation as a continuation of the cycle of organ allotransplantation from dream to reality but he is not sure yet where his own path will take him. Angela aspires to be an abdominal transplant surgeon, hopefully working on xenotransplantation clinical trials. Raza sees his work in the field of pig islet xenotransplantation, utilizing his expertise in gene engineering to make “better” islets.

Xiaoqian believes that xenotransplantation will be an alternative treatment for many patients with end-stage organ failure and hopes to run a lab doing clinical porcine islet transplantation. Kazuhiro wants to continue research in pathology regarding kidney transplantation and he believes that kidney xenotransplantation, including the tolerance strategy that he is working on in Columbia will be successful. Yuichi feels that by incorporating gene modification and overcoming immunologic issues, islet and/or kidney xenotransplantation will undergo clinical trials in the US within 5-10 years and he hopes to perform clinical kidney xenotransplantation in Japan.

While it may be difficult for some of us to think back to our own early experiences or our first presentation at an international meeting, it is refreshing to get to know our younger members and the perspectives that they have. The IXA is truly an international association with members from all over the world. Talented investigators can and do seek out positions and mentors to guide them from around the globe. The awardees’ mentors, David Cooper, Burcin Ekser, Wayne Hawthorne, Bernhard Hering, Mee Kum Kim, Takaaki Kobayashi, Phillip O’Connell, Gina Rayat, Wei Wang, and Kazuhiko Yamada as well as many other experienced and well-respected scientists and physicians, give back each year to the field by helping to mold the next generation of leaders. The advice that we would offer to all of our young investigators is to keep working hard, pushing the boundaries of our knowledge, and to remember that the IXA offers a community of support and resources for you.