Bishop Jacob Muricken completed all legal formalities on Friday so he could donate a kidney to a man who media named as E. Sooraj.

Bishop Muricken, 52, is the auxiliary bishop of Syro-Malabar diocese of Palai in India.

A kidney transplant is needed to save the life of Mr Sooraj, 30, who is suffering from organ failure.

"This is perhaps for the first time in the history, a serving bishop is donating one of his kidneys to save a valuable life," said Kidney Federation chairman Fr Davis Chiramal.

He said the organ transplantation surgery involving the bishop will be performed at Lakeshore Hospital, Ernakulam, on June 1.

"Sooraj belongs to a very poor family. He is the sole bread winner of his family comprising his mother and wife", Fr Chiramal said.

He had lost his father four years ago. Later, his brother died of heart attack.

"Hearing his sad stories, the bishop decided to donate one of his kidneys to the Hindu [man]

"We also want to generate money from generous people for successfully completing the organ transplantation surgery," the priest said.

Fr Chiramal had previously donated one of his own kidneys to an ailing patient.

Bishop Muricken said he felt inspired upon hearing a talk given by the priest.

Sources

• Udupit Today
• Times of India
• Catholic Hierarchy
• Image: The Week India

An internet search reveals a website offering kidneys for sale and the contact information of those able to procure them. A young woman, posing as a migrant worker from Hebei province, calls a man who has advertised on the website, identified as Mr He.

"I need money," she says over the phone. "Do you want a woman's kidney?"

Mr He asks her age. Twenty-five, she replies.

"Of course we want your kidney."

Mr He tells the woman to travel to Xuzhou city, Jiangsu province, where somebody will be waiting when her train pulls into the station. She'll be given a physical examination and, if she's found to be in good health, Mr He will find a suitable transplant candidate. He says he'll pay RMB 320,000 (50,000 dollars) - a dubious offer, since most kidneys in China sell for around RMB 100,000 (15,000 dollars) - and promises to transfer the money before surgery.

In China, around 1.5 million people require organ transplants, but just 10,000 receive them each year. The vast majority of organs in China still come from condemned prisoners, but new government regulations have reduced the number of organs available for transplant. Meanwhile, few Chinese agree to donate their organs upon death, widening the gap between supply and demand.

Read more about Organ sales, being only a mouse-click away

Creating stem cells without the use of embryos offers scientists a powerful new set of tools for studying the molecular mechanisms driving genetic kidney disorders such as polycystic kidney disease and Alport syndrome, as well as for testing new treatments for the diseases.

"This research is a stepping stone for the development of iPS cells from patients with genetic kidney disease, which is one of the most common life-threatening genetic conditions," said team leader and kidney specialist Sharon Ricardo, with Monash Immunology and Stem Cell Laboratories. There are currently no treatments to prevent or slow life-threatening damage caused by such inherited kidney diseases.

Bernie Tuch, director of the NSW Stem Cell Network, welcomed the "novel" work. "The advantage in having a kidney cell as the source iPS cell is that it's the only type of cell that retains the full genetic defect," he said.

That is, if skin cells are used to create iPS cells for kidney research, they do not "remember" the defect causing the person's inherited kidney disease.

Source

• The Australian
• Image: Health Science Technology