International Xenotransplantation Association--sixth congress. Meeting the challenge of the new millennium.

The Sixth Congress of the International Xenotransplantion Association was a relatively small meeting, dealing with the most recent updates in this specialized field. The meeting covered all aspects of xenotransplantation, including physiological incompatibilities between donor animals and humans, genetic manipulation of pigs, immune biology of xenograft rejection, novel therapeutic agents, infectious risks, and ethics. It is clear that further gene manipulations within the potential pig donor are required before clinical trials involving the transplantation of most organs and tissues can commence. The overall impression was that of sustained progress in most areas, rather than any outstanding breakthroughs. On the other hand, there was no unexpected finding that would suggest that ultimately xenotransplantation is not feasible. New therapeutic agents with potential in future clinical trials were presented. In particular, the use of conjugates of galactose alpha-1,3 galactose (alpha-Gal), which are particularly effective in absorbing alpha-Gal antibodies, may be beneficial when pig organs progress to clinical trials.