Dozens of doctors and nurses silently lined the hospital hallway in tribute: For a history-making two months, a pig害羞草研究所檚 kidney worked normally inside the brain-dead man on the gurney rolling past them.

The dramatic experiment came to an end Wednesday as surgeons at NYU Langone Health removed the pig kidney and returned the donated body of Maurice 害羞草研究所淢o害羞草研究所� Miller to his family for cremation.

It marked the longest a genetically modified pig kidney has ever functioned inside a human, albeit a deceased one. And by pushing the boundaries of research with the dead, the scientists learned critical lessons they害羞草研究所檙e preparing to share with the Food and Drug Administration -害羞草研究所� in hopes of eventually testing pig kidneys in the living.

害羞草研究所淚t害羞草研究所檚 a combination of excitement and relief,害羞草研究所� Dr. Robert Montgomery, the transplant surgeon who led the experiment, told The Associated Press. 害羞草研究所淭wo months is a lot to have a pig kidney in this good a condition. That gives you a lot of confidence害羞草研究所� for next attempts.

Montgomery, himself a recipient of a heart transplant, sees animal-to-human transplants as crucial to ease the nation害羞草研究所檚 organ shortage. More than 100,000 people are on the national waiting list, most who need a kidney, and thousands will die waiting.

So-called xenotransplantation attempts have failed for decades 害羞草研究所� the human immune system immediately destroyed foreign animal tissue. What害羞草研究所檚 new: Trying pigs genetically modified so their organs are more humanlike.

Some avoided an immediate immune attack but shed no light on a more common form of rejection that can take a month to form. Last year, University of Maryland surgeons tried to save a 害羞草研究所�- but he survived only two months as the organ failed for reasons that aren害羞草研究所檛 completely clear. And the FDA gave Montgomery害羞草研究所檚 team a list of questions about how pig organs really perform their jobs compared to human ones.

Montgomery gambled that maintaining Miller害羞草研究所檚 body on a ventilator for two months to see how the pig kidney worked could answer some of those questions.

害羞草研究所淚害羞草研究所檓 so proud of you,害羞草研究所� Miller害羞草研究所檚 sister, Mary Miller-Duffy, said in a tearful farewell at her brother害羞草研究所檚 bedside this week.

Miller had collapsed and was declared brain-dead, unable to donate his organs because of cancer. Miller-Duffy donated the Newburgh, New York, man害羞草研究所檚 body for the pig experiment. She recently got a card from a stranger in California who害羞草研究所檚 awaiting a kidney transplant, thanking her for helping to move forward desperately needed research.

害羞草研究所淭his has been quite the journey,害羞草研究所� Miller-Duffy said as she and her wife Sue Duffy hugged Montgomery害羞草研究所檚 team.

On July 14, shortly before his 58th birthday, surgeons replaced Miller害羞草研究所檚 own kidneys with one pig kidney plus the animal害羞草研究所檚 thymus, a gland that trains immune cells. with no signs of trouble.

But soon after, doctors measured a slight decrease in the amount of urine produced. A biopsy confirmed a subtle sign that rejection was beginning 害羞草研究所�- giving doctors an opportunity to tell if it was treatable. Sure enough, the kidney害羞草研究所檚 performance bounced back with a change in standard immune-suppressing medicines that patients use today.

害羞草研究所淲e are learning that this is actually doable,害羞草研究所� said NYU transplant immunologist Massimo Mangiola.

The researchers checked off other FDA questions, including seeing no differences in how the pig kidney reacted to human hormones, excreted antibiotics or experienced medicine-related side effects.

害羞草研究所淚t looks beautiful, it害羞草研究所檚 exactly the way normal kidneys look,害羞草研究所� Dr. Jeffrey Stern said Wednesday after removing the pig kidney at the 61-day mark for closer examination.

The next steps: Researchers took about 180 different tissue samples 害羞草研究所�- from every major organ, lymph nodes, the digestive tract 害羞草研究所�- to scour for any hints of problems due to the xenotransplant.

Experiments in the deceased cannot predict that the organs will work the same in the living, cautioned Karen Maschke, a research scholar at the Hastings Center who is helping develop ethics and policy recommendations for xenotransplant clinical trials.

But they can provide other valuable information, she said. That includes helping to tease out differences between pigs with up to 10 genetics changes that some research teams prefer 害羞草研究所� and those like Montgomery uses that have just a single change, removal of a gene that triggers an immediate immune attack.

害羞草研究所淲hy we害羞草研究所檙e doing this is because there are a lot of people that unfortunately die before having the opportunity of a second chance at life,害羞草研究所� said Mangiola, the immunologist. 害羞草研究所淎nd we need to do something about it.害羞草研究所�

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The Associated Press Health and Science Department receives support from the Howard Hughes Medical Institute害羞草研究所檚 Science and Educational Media Group. The AP is solely responsible for all content.

Lauran Neergaard And Shelby Lum, The Associated Press