A landmark medical achievement is reshaping what may soon be possible for patients awaiting organ transplants. In a world-first demonstration, researchers successfully transplanted a human kidney that had been converted from blood type A to the universally compatible type O — offering a new path toward reducing wait times and increasing access to lifesaving organs.
The study, published in Nature Biomedical Engineering, was led by Dr. Turun Song at West China Hospital in collaboration with scientists at the University of British Columbia and Vancouver-based Avivo Biomedical Inc. The achievement builds on more than a decade of UBC-led research into enzymes capable of removing blood group antigens from tissues.
The results could not be more timely. More than 3,500 Canadians are currently waiting for a transplant, and in 2024 alone, 219 people died before receiving one. Patients with O-type blood face the steepest barriers: they wait up to three times longer and have the highest mortality rates on the waitlist. CBC recently highlighted the urgency of the problem, noting that blood-type mismatch remains one of the most common reasons donor organs cannot be used.
A milestone in transplant medicine
The breakthrough centers on a proprietary enzyme system, originally discovered at UBC, that can strip A-antigen from blood and organs. Using this platform, researchers transformed a donor kidney from type A to type O, creating what the team calls an Enzyme-Converted type-O (ECO) organ.
The ECO kidney was transplanted into a brain-dead, blood-type–mismatched recipient, a model that replicates the conditions of a real transplant without risking patient safety. The kidney functioned under normal blood flow, and critically, no hyperacute rejection occurred, a rapid immune response that typically causes incompatible organs to fail within hours.
By demonstrating that an ECO organ can operate safely in a mismatched recipient, the study opens the door to expanding the usable donor pool and reducing waitlist mortality.
From UBC discovery to clinical promise
The science behind this milestone began at UBC in 2010, when Professors Stephen Withers and Jayachandran Kizhakkedathu first developed an enzyme system capable of removing blood group antigens. Early iterations showed potential but were not yet strong enough for clinical use. Through years of refinement, their team developed an improved enzyme cocktail in 2019 with significantly stronger activity and clinical relevance.
Innovation UBC played a key role throughout this journey by supporting intellectual property assessment, evaluating commercialization pathways, and helping advance the research toward real-world application. As the technology matured, collaboration with Canadian Blood Services and organ transplantation researchers at the University Health Network generated the essential data needed to move toward translational studies.
A venture built on UBC innovation
The next chapter unfolded in UBC’s venture-building ecosystem. In 2020, Withers’ student, Peter Rahfeld, entered Innovation UBC’s Venture Founder program to shape the commercial strategy for the enzyme platform. The team later joined the HATCH Venture Builder, where they received mentorship, industry guidance, and support in building a foundational team.
These programs provided access to investors, clinicians, and industry partners, helping the venture refine its roadmap and secure essential collaborations. By the time Avivo completed the HATCH program in 2023, it had established itself as a scalable company positioned to take ECO organs toward clinical trials.
A strengthened innovation ecosystem
Avivo’s trajectory also reflects the evolution of UBC’s own innovation landscape. During the venture’s early development, entrepreneurship@UBC and the University-Industry Liaison Office (UILO) worked in parallel to support commercialization and venture creation. These units have since unified as Innovation UBC, offering an integrated model that brings licensing, venture-building, partnership development, and research translation together under one organization. This cohesive structure ensures that emerging technologies receive coordinated support at every stage.
Advancing toward universally compatible organs
While more research is needed before ECO organs can be tested in living patients, the successful transplant marks a pivotal milestone. It demonstrates that blood-type barriers may soon be surmountable.
For the thousands of people waiting for an organ match, and for the families of those who never received one, the implications of this work are profound.
The breakthrough underscores what becomes possible when sustained research excellence, entrepreneurial drive, and institutional support converge. From a curiosity-driven discovery in a UBC lab to a world-first achievement published in a leading scientific journal, this work illustrates how Innovation UBC helps transform ideas into impact — and how that impact can change lives.
