Swine in Biomedical Research Practice Flashcards

A set of vocabulary flashcards covering the anatomical, physiological, and research-based roles of pigs in human medicine and science.

Heparin

A product derived from pigs used for blood thinning in humans.

Bioprosthetic Heart Valves

Swine heart valves transplanted into approximately $60,000$ heart valve patients/year in the U.S., which can last upwards of $15$ years.

Xenotransfusion

The transfer of blood between species; pigs are considered the best candidates due to similarities in red blood cell size, life span, and hemoglobin content.

Biomedical Research

The use of animals to emulate the human condition in both health and diseases.

Michael Swindle

The author of Swine in the Laboratory who stated, 'If something works in the pig, then it has a high possibility of working in the human.'

Mandible

The jawbone, which is square in pigs and more rounded in humans.

Needle teeth

Specific teeth that pigs are born with, unlike humans who are born with no teeth.

Salivary Glands

Glands in the oral cavity; in pigs, submandibular glands are in front of the parotid glands, while in humans, they are next to the sublingual glands.

Liver

A vital organ that detoxifies blood; in pigs it has five lobes, whereas in humans it has four lobes.

Gallbladder

An organ located below the liver in pigs (next to it in humans) that produces bile to break down food using bilirubin and bile salts.

Pancreas

An organ located beneath the stomach in pigs (next to it in humans) that produces enzymes to break down stomach content.

Duodenum (Pig)

The section connecting the pyloric sphincter to the small intestine; part of the small intestine which in pigs has an overall length of approximately $18,m$.

Duodenum (Human)

The shortest part of the small intestine measuring at approximately $25.4,cm$.

Jejunum (Human)

The second largest part of the small intestine measuring at approximately $91,cm$.

Ileum (Human)

The largest part of the small intestine measuring approximately $183,cm$.

Cecum

An organ at the end of the small intestine used for the digestion of fibrous feeds in pigs, a function humans do not share.

Colon

An organ that extracts remaining nutrients from stomach content; it is gathered in one area in pigs but frames the small intestine in humans.

Myocardial infarction

A heart attack; swine react similarly to this condition as humans and are used to study heart disease and failure.

Dermatology Research

The use of pigs to study burn victims, chemical weapon testing, and wound healing because pig skin heals like human skin.

Xenotransplantation

The transplantation of pig organs into humans, which is complicated by hyperacute rejection from the human immune system.

Miniature breeds

Strains of pigs like Hanford, Yucatan, Sinclair, and Gottingen developed for biomedical research due to their manageable size at maturity.

Germ free

A condition in which research pigs are raised free from infection of microorganisms, typically produced via hysterectomy on a pregnant sow.