About the Authors

Burcin Ekser

Affiliations Thomas E. Starzl Transplantation Institute, University of Pittsburgh Medical Center, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, United States of America, Department of Surgery, Transplantation and Advanced Technologies, Vascular Surgery and Organ Transplant Unit, University Hospital of Catania, Catania, Italy

Edwin Klein

Affiliation Division of Laboratory Animal Resources, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, United States of America

Jing He

Affiliation Division of Immunogenetics, Department of Pediatrics, Children's Hospital of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, United States of America

Donna B. Stolz

Affiliation Department of Cell Biology and Physiology, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, United States of America

Gabriel J. Echeverri

Affiliations Thomas E. Starzl Transplantation Institute, University of Pittsburgh Medical Center, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, United States of America, Mediterranean Institute for Transplantation and Advanced Specialized Therapies (ISMETT), Palermo, Italy

Cassandra Long

Affiliation Thomas E. Starzl Transplantation Institute, University of Pittsburgh Medical Center, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, United States of America

Chih Che Lin

Affiliation Thomas E. Starzl Transplantation Institute, University of Pittsburgh Medical Center, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, United States of America

Mohamed Ezzelarab

Affiliation Thomas E. Starzl Transplantation Institute, University of Pittsburgh Medical Center, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, United States of America

Hidetaka Hara

Affiliation Thomas E. Starzl Transplantation Institute, University of Pittsburgh Medical Center, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, United States of America

Massimiliano Veroux

Affiliation Department of Surgery, Transplantation and Advanced Technologies, Vascular Surgery and Organ Transplant Unit, University Hospital of Catania, Catania, Italy

David Ayares

Affiliation Revivicor Inc., Blacksburg, Virginia, United States of America

David K. C. Cooper

cooperdk@upmc.edu

Affiliation Thomas E. Starzl Transplantation Institute, University of Pittsburgh Medical Center, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, United States of America

Bruno Gridelli

Affiliations Thomas E. Starzl Transplantation Institute, University of Pittsburgh Medical Center, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, United States of America, Mediterranean Institute for Transplantation and Advanced Specialized Therapies (ISMETT), Palermo, Italy

Competing Interests

David Ayares owns stock in Revivicor, Inc. The other authors declare no conflict of interest. This does not alter the authors' adherence to all the PLoS ONE policies on sharing data and materials.

Author Contributions

Performed in vitro assays and in vivo procedures: CL CCL GJE ME HH BE. Performed animal care and follow-up: BE. Supervised the production of genetically-engineered pigs: DA. Co-designed the study and experiments: DKCC BG. Assisted with surgeries: CL CCL GJE ME HH. Participated in the surgical procedures: DKCC. Performed the surgical procedures: BG BE. Performed light microscopy and interpretation: EK. Performed immunohistological studies: JH. Performed electron microscopy: DBS. Participated in preparation and discussion of the manuscript: MV. Co-wrote the manuscript: DKCC BG BE. All authors advised on the writing of the manuscript.