- Rahmon Omonovich, please, tell us about the main stages of Uzbek xenotransplantology development.

- The transplantology using special materials for the restoration of normal health tissue and organs damaged by disease or injury has widely spread in the world medical practice for the past ten years. It uses a variety of materials as transplants, e.g. artificial or derived from human tissues as well as animal tissues (they are called xenografts). In fact, all three types are interchangeable, they each have their advantages and disadvantages.

Previously, all grafts were procured from foreign manufacturers. But in order to facilitate their intensive use in the practice of local physicians, it was necessary to establish the production of them in the country so that they were always at hand. The xenografts from Surhandaryo have all the licenses of the Ministry of Healthcare permitting their use in medical practice, and are applied in many clinics of the country.

- First, these are the medical testimonies. The chance of the rejection of the xenograft is quite little: some time after treatment it even can not be distinguished from the human tissues. We use a bag of lamb heart as raw material. The animals have no genetic diseases that can be transmitted to humans with implantable tissues. Lambs do not get sick with many infectious diseases that threaten the patient’s life, and the other diseases are diagnosed during laboratory examination of the samples. And, of course, the choice was influenced by the availability of raw materials. Sheep breeding is one of the largest areas of agriculture both in Surhandaryo region and in the country as a whole.

- Indeed, at the very beginning the domestic xenografts were only used in the treatment of the eye diseases. The thing is that the technology of xenografts application was developed by ophthalmologists, who used this material in the treatment of myopia, macular degeneration, injuries, i.e. to cure more than 20 eye pathologies. Today, however, the scope of xenografts application expands. They are required in otorhinolaryngology. The specialists of the clinic of Tashkent Medical Academy are developing the treatment of violation of the integrity of the eardrum with the use of xenografts. The Surhandaryo regional branch of the Republican Scientific Center for Emergency Medical Care are developing techniques of the use of xenografts in the treatment of extensive burns of the skin. There are researches aimed at the elaboration of the methods of using of this material in the treatment of congenital anomalies of the mouth, such as cleft palate and cleft lip. In general, the scope of domestic xenografts application is very broad, but we need to develop appropriate methodology. I hope, this is what the young scientists will be engaged in.