Manila, Sept. 16 -- The National Kidney and Transplant Institute (NKTI) on Wednesday cautioned against a social media trend featuring humorous posts and artificial intelligence (AI)-generated images about selling or trading kidneys for gadgets.

The NKTI acknowledged that the posts are intended as jokes rather than incitements to unlawful acts.

However, it said that "human organs must never be treated as commodities or forms of payment."

"Even when made in jest, such posts may be misunderstood, particularly by young or vulnerable audiences," the NKTI added.

The institute said such content could spread misinformation, create false impressions that organ trading is legal, and trivialize the experiences of living donors, transplant recipi...