Headline
Pig Kidney Functioning In Human For More Than A Month

A genetically-modified pig kidney is continuing to function well a record-breaking 32 days after it was transplanted into a brain dead patient, a medical center said Wednesday.
The experimental procedure is part of a growing field of research aimed at advancing cross-species organ donation and thus reducing transplant waiting lists.
There are more than 103,000 people waiting for transplants in the United States, 88,000 of whom need kidneys.
“This work demonstrates a pig kidney -— with only one genetic modification and without experimental medications or devices — can replace the function of a human kidney for at least 32 days without being rejected,” said surgeon Robert Montgomery, director of the NYU Langone Transplant Institute.
READ ALSO: I Receive N50k To Secure Vessel Used For Storing Stolen Crude Oil — Suspect
Montgomery carried out the first genetically modified pig kidney transplant to a human in September 2021, followed by a similar procedure in November 2021. There have since been a handful of other cases.
While previous such transplants have involved up to 10 modifications, the latest experiment involved just one: the gene involved in the so-called “hyperacute rejection,” which would otherwise occur within minutes of an animal organ being connected to a human circulatory system.
By “knocking out” the gene responsible for a biomolecule called alpha-gal — which otherwise would be a prime target for human antibodies — the NYU Langone team were able to stop immediate rejection.
READ ALSO: Police Nabs Dreaded Wanted Benue Bandit, Accomplices
“We’ve now gathered more evidence to show that, at least in kidneys, just eliminating the gene that triggers a hyperacute rejection may be enough along with clinically approved immunosuppressive drugs to successfully manage the transplant in a human for optimal performance—potentially in the long-term,” said Montgomery.
They also embedded the pig’s thymus gland — responsible for educating the immune system — in the kidney’s outer layer, in order to prevent a more delayed host rejection.
Both of the patient’s own kidneys were removed, then one pig kidney was transplanted, and started immediately producing urine.
READ ALSO: Police Nabs Dreaded Wanted Benue Bandit, Accomplices
Monitoring showed that levels of creatinine, a waste product, were at optimal levels, and there was no evidence of rejection.
Crucially, no evidence of porcine cytomegalovirus — which may trigger organ failure — have been detected, and the team plan to continue monitoring for another month.
The research was made possible by the family of the 57-year-old male patient who had elected to make his body available for science.
In January 2022, surgeons at the University of Maryland Medical School carried out the world’s first pig-to-human transplant on a living patient. He died two months after the milestone, with the presence of porcine cytomegalovirus in the organ later blamed for his death.
Headline
Afghanistan’s Taliban Release US Citizen

Afghanistan’s Taliban government released an American citizen from detention on Sunday, a week after freeing an elderly British couple.
In a statement, the ministry identified the detainee as Amir Amiri and said he had been handed over to Adam Boehler, Washington’s special envoy on hostages.
Boehler made a rare visit to Kabul earlier this month to discuss the possibility of a prisoner exchange with the Taliban government.
“The Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan released an American citizen named Amir Amiri from prison today,” the Foreign Ministry on X, using the official name for the government.
“The Afghan government does not view the issues of citizens from a political angle and makes it clear that ways can be found to resolve issues through diplomacy.”
READ ALSO:Taliban Detains 14 For Playing Music, Singing At Afghanistan Private Gathering
Little is known about Amiri’s case, as it has not been widely reported.
An official with knowledge of the release said Amiri, who is 36, “had been detained in Afghanistan since December 2024”.
The official added that Amiri would stop briefly in Doha, Qatar for medical checks before continuing back to the United States.
US Secretary of State Marco Rubio welcomed the release of Amiri, said he had been “wrongfully detained” in Afghanistan, and thanked Qatar for helping to get him freed.
President Donald Trump “has made it clear we will not stop until every American unjustly detained abroad is back home,” Rubio wrote on X.
In January two Americans were freed in exchange for an Afghan fighter, Khan Mohammed, who was convicted of narco-terrorism in the United States.
READ ALSO:Taliban Court Publicly Flogs Woman For Illicit Relationship, Running Away From Home
Another American, airline mechanic George Glezmann, was freed after more than two years in detention during a March visit to Kabul by Boehler.
At least one other US citizen, Mahmood Habibi, is being held in Afghanistan. The United States is offering a $5 million reward for information leading to his capture.
The Taliban authorities deny any involvement in his 2022 disappearance.
Just a week ago, Britons Peter Reynolds, 80, and his wife Barbie, 76, were released from a Kabul prison after almost eight months in detention. The Taliban authorities did not say why they were detained.
The couple was arrested in February and first held in a maximum security facility, “then in underground cells, without daylight, before being transferred” to the intelligence services in Kabul, UN experts have said.
READ ALSO:1.4 Million Girls Banned From Afghan Schools Since Taliban Return – UNESCO
The couple married in Kabul in 1970 and have spent almost two decades living in Afghanistan, running educational programmes for women and children. They also became Afghan citizens.
All the releases have been mediated by Qatar.
Both the US and the UK, like many other Western nations, warn against all travel to Afghanistan.
Russia is the only country to have officially recognised the Taliban government, which has imposed a strict version of Islamic law and been accused of sweeping human rights violations.
Dozens of foreign nationals have been arrested since the group returned to power in August 2021, when most embassies withdrew their diplomatic presence.
The Taliban government says it wants to have good relations with other countries, notably the United States, despite the 20-year war against US-led forces.
Headline
One Dead, Several Injured After US Shooting, Fire At Mormon Church

One person was killed and several others injured Sunday after a shooter targeted a Mormon church in the US state of Michigan, where the building was also set on fire, authorities said.
The suspect, a 40-year-old man from a nearby town, was shot dead by law enforcement after the attack, police said, without specifying any possible motive.
President Donald Trump called the shooting “horrendous” and said on his Truth Social platform it “appears to be yet another targeted attack on Christians in the United States of America.”
Images from the scene showed emergency services escorting people on stretchers and a large plume of dark smoke at the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in Grand Blanc Township.
READ ALSO:Head Of Mormon Church Is Dead
Local police chief William Renye told reporters the suspect drove his vehicle through the front doors of the church and then began firing at people inside with an assault rifle.
He said the service was active with “hundreds of people within the church.”
Authorities believe the gunman also deliberately set fire to the church before he was killed by responding police officers, Renye said.
Ten gunshot victims were transported to hospital, including one who has died, the official said.
READ ALSO:US Lifts Restrictions On Visa Validity For Ghanaians, Leaves Nigeria’s Unchanged
He added that the fire had been extinguished but that “we do believe that we will find additional victims once we have that scene secure.”
A woman who lives near the church told AFP: “My husband heard people screaming, one lady yelling for help.”
FBI agents are on the scene to assist the investigation, chief Kash Patel said on X.
“Violence in a place of worship is a cowardly and criminal act. Our prayers are with the victims and their families during this terrible tragedy,” he wrote.
Attorney General Pam Bondi also said she had been briefed on the incident.
Headline
Head Of Mormon Church Is Dead

Russell Nelson, who headed the Mormon church since 2018, died on Saturday night at age 101, the church announced.
“With sorrow we announce that Russell M. Nelson, beloved President of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, passed away peacefully… at his home in Salt Lake City,” it said in a statement, using the church’s official name.
The former heart surgeon was “the oldest president in the history of the Church,” the statement added, without specifying a cause of death.
Utah Republican senator Mike Lee lauded Nelson as a “bold, visionary leader prepared by God to testify of Jesus Christ in the very times in which we now live.”
READ ALSO:Saudi Arabia’s Grand Mufti Is Dead
Nelson became the 17th president of the Church in January 2018 at age 93, succeeding Thomas Monson.
Before becoming president, Nelson successfully pushed for the church to label same-sex married couples as “apostates” and bar their children under the age of 18 from religious rites, including baptisms — though that policy was scrapped after he took on the role.
He also broke with his predecessors and cautioned against using shorthands “LDS” or “Mormons” to refer to the church.
Nelson’s successor will be chosen after his funeral by the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles, who like the church’s president are considered prophets by believers.
READ ALSO:Brazilian Jazz Legend, Hermeto Pascoal, Is Dead
The religious leader is survived by his wife, eight of his children, 57 grandchildren and more than 167 great-grandchildren, according to the church.
Founded in 1830, the Mormon church considers itself a Christian body, but bases its doctrines on the Book of Mormon, a text purporting to contain a fuller version of the words of Jesus Christ than that recorded in the Bible.
The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints claims a total membership of more than 17.5 million people.
- Entertainment4 days ago
Davido Gifts Wife Chioma 2025 Mercedes-Benz G-Wagon
- News4 days ago
Lagos Govt Gives Computer Village Traders Ultimatum To Relocate To Katangowa
- News5 days ago
[OPINION] Rivers: The Futility Of Power And The Illusion Of Victory
- Entertainment5 days ago
Why I Leaked, Circulated My 2021 Sex Tape —Tiwa Savage
- Entertainment5 days ago
Nollywood Actress, Mercy Aigbe, Loses Mother
- Politics5 days ago
Natasha Resumes At Senate, Calls Akpabio Dictator
- Metro3 days ago
Police Declare Man Wanted For Attempted Murder, Fraud
- News3 days ago
JUST IN: Dangote Refinery Reacts To Alleged Mass Sack Of Workforce
- Business3 days ago
Naira Appreciates Massively Against US Dollar In The Black Market, Highest In 15 Months
- News4 days ago
Ajayi Crowther Varsity Appoints First Female VC