Porcine Liver (porcine + liver)

Distribution by Scientific Domains


Selected Abstracts


Non-heart-beating donor porcine livers: The adverse effect of cooling

LIVER TRANSPLANTATION, Issue 1 2005
Srikanth Reddy
Normothermic preservation has been shown to be advantageous in an experimental model of preservation of non-heart-beating donor (NHBD) livers, which have undergone significant warm ischemic injury. The logistics of clinical organ retrieval might dictate a period of cold preservation prior to warm perfusion. We have investigated the effects of a brief period of cold preservation on NHBD livers prior to normothermic preservation. Porcine livers were subjected to 60 minutes of warm ischaemia and then assigned to following groups: Group W (n = 5), normothermic preservation for 24 hours; and Group C (n = 6), cold preservation in University of Wisconsin solution for 1 hour followed by normothermic preservation for 23 hours (total preservation time, 24 hours). Synthetic function (bile production and factor V production) and cellular damage were compared on the ex vivo circuit during preservation. There was no significant difference in the synthetic function of the livers (bile production and factor V production). Markers of hepatocellular damage (alanine aminotransferase and aspartate aminotransferase release), sinusoidal endothelial cell dysfunction (hyaluronic acid), and Kupffer cell injury (,-galactosidase) were significantly higher in Group C. The histology of the livers at the end of perfusion was similar. In conclusion, a brief-period cold preservation prior to normothermic perfusion maintains the synthetic function and metabolic activity but results in significant hepatocellular damage, sinusoidal endothelial cell dysfunction, and Kupffer cell injury. Transplant studies are required to establish whether livers treated in this way are viable for transplantation. (Liver Transpl 2005;11:35,38.) [source]


Influence of extracorporeal porcine liver perfusion on nonhuman primates: Minimizing hemolysis improves subsequent survival

LIVER TRANSPLANTATION, Issue 7 2001
Ryuta Nishitai MD
The aim of this study is to detect and analyze risk factors of direct cross-circulation between porcine liver and nonhuman primates before a clinical application of extracorporeal liver perfusion (ECLP) as a liver-assist method. Porcine livers were perfused with baboon blood in an ECLP system. Six healthy baboons were directly connected to the ECLP system with continuous prostaglandin E1 administration. Cross-circulation was terminated in the following circumstances: (1) hepatic arterial or portal perfusion pressures elevated to 200 or 60 mm Hg, respectively; (2) massive exudative bleeding from the graft surface; or (3) bile output decreased to less than 5 ,L/h/g of liver weight. In case 1, cross-circulation was continued for 10 hours. Severe macroscopic hemolysis occurred, and serum hemoglobin (s-Hb) concentration reached a peak of 47 mg/dL. The baboon died of acute renal failure 2 days later. Histological study of the perfused porcine liver showed marked microthrombi formation. In 3 of the later 5 cases, cross-circulation was discontinued when mild macroscopic hemolysis was observed. The duration of the 5 cross-circulations was maximally 6 hours (mean, 4.4 ± 1.2 [SD] hours). Mean s-Hb concentration in the 5 cases was elevated to 14.8 ± 5.8 mg/dL at the end of cross-circulation and decreased to the baseline level within 24 hours. These 5 baboons survived without organ dysfunction or immunologic disturbance. When severe hemolysis is avoided, direct cross-circulation using the ECLP system can be achieved without serious complications in nonhuman primates. [source]


Effect of Hepatic Artery Flow on Bile Secretory Function After Cold Ischemia

AMERICAN JOURNAL OF TRANSPLANTATION, Issue 2 2003
David P. Foley
These studies evaluated the influence of hepatic arterial flow on biliary secretion after cold ischemia. Preparation of livers for transplantation or hepatic support impairs biliary secretion. The earliest indication of cold preservation injury during reperfusion is circulatory function. Arterial flow at this time may be critical for bile secretion. Porcine livers were isolated, maintained at 4° for 2 h and connected in an extracorporeal circuit to an anesthetized normal pig. The extracorporeal livers were perfused either by both the hepatic artery and portal vein (dual) or by the portal vein alone (single). Incremental doses of sodium taurocholate were infused into the portal vein of both the dual and single perfused livers, and the bile secretion was compared. Most endogenous bile acids are lost during hepatic isolation. After supplementation, the biliary secretion of phosphatidyl choline and cholesterol was significantly better in the dual than single vessel-perfused livers; however, no difference was seen in bilirubin output. Single perfused livers were completely unable to increase biliary cholesterol in response to bile acid. The dependence of bile cholesterol secretion on arterial flow indicates the importance of this flow to the detoxification of compounds dependent on phosphatidyl choline transport during early transplantation. [source]


Influence of extracorporeal porcine liver perfusion on nonhuman primates: Minimizing hemolysis improves subsequent survival

LIVER TRANSPLANTATION, Issue 7 2001
Ryuta Nishitai MD
The aim of this study is to detect and analyze risk factors of direct cross-circulation between porcine liver and nonhuman primates before a clinical application of extracorporeal liver perfusion (ECLP) as a liver-assist method. Porcine livers were perfused with baboon blood in an ECLP system. Six healthy baboons were directly connected to the ECLP system with continuous prostaglandin E1 administration. Cross-circulation was terminated in the following circumstances: (1) hepatic arterial or portal perfusion pressures elevated to 200 or 60 mm Hg, respectively; (2) massive exudative bleeding from the graft surface; or (3) bile output decreased to less than 5 ,L/h/g of liver weight. In case 1, cross-circulation was continued for 10 hours. Severe macroscopic hemolysis occurred, and serum hemoglobin (s-Hb) concentration reached a peak of 47 mg/dL. The baboon died of acute renal failure 2 days later. Histological study of the perfused porcine liver showed marked microthrombi formation. In 3 of the later 5 cases, cross-circulation was discontinued when mild macroscopic hemolysis was observed. The duration of the 5 cross-circulations was maximally 6 hours (mean, 4.4 ± 1.2 [SD] hours). Mean s-Hb concentration in the 5 cases was elevated to 14.8 ± 5.8 mg/dL at the end of cross-circulation and decreased to the baseline level within 24 hours. These 5 baboons survived without organ dysfunction or immunologic disturbance. When severe hemolysis is avoided, direct cross-circulation using the ECLP system can be achieved without serious complications in nonhuman primates. [source]


Interspecies differences in hepatic Ca2+ -ATPase activity and the effect of cold preservation on porcine liver Ca2+ -ATPase function

LIVER TRANSPLANTATION, Issue 2 2001
Piotr K. Janicki MD
The accumulation of intracellular calcium ([Ca2+]i) caused by ischemia-reperfusion during liver transplantation has been implicated as a factor leading to primary graft nonfunction. Plasma membrane (PM) and endoplasmic reticulum (ER) Ca2+ -adenosinetriphosphatases (ATPases) are the primary transporters that maintain [Ca2+]i homeostasis in the liver. We hypothesized that the porcine liver is better than the rat liver as a model for the study of human liver Ca2+ -ATPase activity. We also hypothesized that cold preservation would depress Ca2+ -ATPase activity in the porcine liver. Pig and rat livers were harvested, and human liver samples were obtained from surgical resection specimens. All were preserved with University of Wisconsin solution, and porcine livers were also preserved on ice for 2 to 18 hours. Ca2+ -ATPase activity was measured after incubation with 45Ca2+ and adenosine triphosphate in the presence of specific Ca2+ -ATPase inhibitors. Porcine PM and ER Ca2+ -ATPase activities were 0.47 ± 0.03 and 1.57 ± 0.10 nmol of Ca2+/mg of protein/min, respectively. This was not significantly different from human liver, whereas rat liver was significantly greater at 2.60 ± 0.03 and 9.2 ± 0.9 nmol of Ca2+/mg of protein/min, respectively. We conclude that the Ca2+ -ATPase activity in the pig liver is equivalent to that of human liver, and thus, the pig liver is a better model than the rat liver. Cold preservation studies showed a significant decrease in porcine hepatic PM Ca2+ -ATPase activity after 4 hours of storage and near-total inhibition after 12 hours. Porcine hepatic ER Ca2+ -ATPase activity showed a 45% decrease in activity by 12 hours and a 69% decrease by 18 hours. We conclude that cold ischemia at clinically relevant times depresses PM Ca2+ -ATPase more than ER Ca2+ -ATPase activity in pig liver homogenates. [source]


Experimental studies on microwave ablation in vitro animal tissues with microwave percutaneous coagulator

MICROWAVE AND OPTICAL TECHNOLOGY LETTERS, Issue 9 2008
Wenquan Che
Abstract The principle and geometry of the microwave percutaneous coagulator system are investigated in this article; the main parts of the system are briefly introduced. A large number of experiments on porcine liver are carried out, and the temperature distribution within the liver are measured and illustrated, for cases of different injected microwave power and ablation time. In addition, the ablation areas in cases of different input microwave powers are also measured. All these results indicate the potential validity of this system on medical treatment of liver cancer of human body. © 2008 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Microwave Opt Technol Lett 50: 2426,2430, 2008; Published online in Wiley InterScience (www.interscience.wiley.com). DOI 10.1002/mop.23694 [source]


Characterization of the porcine melanocortin 2 receptor gene (MC2R,)

ANIMAL GENETICS, Issue 6 2002
K. Jacobs
A porcine bacterial artificial chromosome (BAC) clone, containing the melanocortin 2 receptor gene (MC2R) was isolated. The complete coding sequence of the MC2R gene, contained in 1 exon, was determined. Polymerase chain reaction-single stranded conformational polymorphism (PCR-SSCP) was performed on a 241-bp coding fragment. An AluI polymorphism, detecting a silent mutation, was found and typed on unrelated animals of five different pig breeds. The Meishan, Piétrain and Large White breeds differ significantly in allele frequencies from the Landrace and Czech Meat Pig breeds. The melanocortin 5 receptor gene (MC5R) was detected by PCR in the same BAC clone, as could be expected from the human and porcine mapping data. PCR-SSCP was performed on a 200-bp coding of MC5R, but no polymorphisms were detected. The BAC clone was mapped to Sscr6q27 by fluorescent in situ hybridization (FISH). A (CA)n microsatellite (SGU0002), isolated from the BAC, was localized on chromosome 6 by RH mapping near marker SW1473 and by linkage mapping on the MARC reference family at the same position as the marker SW2173 (97 cM). Allele frequencies, heterozygosity and polymorphism information contents (PIC) values were calculated for the five different pig breeds examined. The transcription of both genes in porcine liver, heart, kidney, fat, brain, pancreas, stomach, bladder, ovaries, lung, spleen, skin, adrenal gland and muscle tissues was examined by reverse transcriptase-polymerase chain reaction. Transcription was detected in skin and adrenal gland tissues for MC2R, while a positive signal was detected for MC5R in kidney, fat, pancreas, skin, adrenal gland and spleen tissues. [source]


A rapid assay method for catechol- O -methyltransferase activity by flow injection analysis

BIOMEDICAL CHROMATOGRAPHY, Issue 4 2002
Nozomi Aoyama
A rapid assay employing flow injection analysis (FIA) to determine the activity of purified catechol- O -methyltransferase (COMT) from porcine liver is described. The method was based on the determination of normetanephrine, the 3- O -methyl metabolite of the substrate norepinephrine. Excess norepinephrine was removed from the incubation mixture by alumina extraction twice to allow normetanephrine to be subjected to flow injection analysis, coulometrical oxidation, fluorogenic reaction with ethylenediamine and fluorescence detection. Km and Vmax values for COMT obtained with the system were 503,µM and 4.51 nmol/min/mg protein, respectively. The method is suitable for screening of COMT inhibitors or activators, as a large number of samples, up to 200, can be processed in one working day. Copyright © 2002 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [source]


Segmental nature of the porcine liver and its potential as a model for experimental partial hepatectomy,

BRITISH JOURNAL OF SURGERY (NOW INCLUDES EUROPEAN JOURNAL OF SURGERY), Issue 4 2003
F. G. Court
Background: In-depth knowledge of pig liver anatomy allows potential research into segmental liver resections and hepatic regeneration, as well as liver transplantation techniques. The segmental anatomy, however, remains largely unknown. This study aimed to delineate the segmental anatomy of the porcine liver in comparison with that of the human. Methods: The segmental anatomy of the porcine liver was determined using acrylic injection casting of ex vivo pig livers, allowing the arterial, venous and biliary supply to be visualized directly. This was correlated using multi-slice computed tomography (CT) and three-dimensional reconstructions. Results: Although the external morphology of the porcine liver differs from that of the human, the segmental anatomy is remarkably similar in term of its vascularity and biliary tree. Conclusion: Acrylic casting of the porcine liver accurately delineates the vascular and biliary anatomy, and is a useful tool for performing experimental liver surgery. The similarities between porcine and human segmental anatomy allow domestic swine to be used as a comparable model. Three-dimensional CT reconstructions can also accurately visualize the anatomy and may be used to perform virtual surgery, or to assess segmental volumes. Copyright © 2003 British Journal of Surgery Society Ltd. Published by John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [source]


Conspicuity of zones of ablation after radiofrequency ablation in porcine livers: Comparison of an extracellular and an SPIO contrast agent

JOURNAL OF MAGNETIC RESONANCE IMAGING, Issue 1 2008
Christopher Bangard MD
Abstract Purpose To compare conspicuity of zones of ablation on nonenhanced, gadopentetate dimeglumine-(Gd-DTPA) and ferucarbotran-(SPIO)-enhanced magnetic resonance (MR) images. Materials and Methods In all, 33 radiofrequency ablations (RFA) were performed in 17 healthy porcine livers at 1.5T MR imaging 1 day and 2 and 4 weeks after RFA: T2-weighted (w) ultra turbo spin echo (UTSE), proton density (PD)-w UTSE, T1-w gradient echo (GRE) pre- and 5 minutes postcontrast administration, dynamic T1-w GRE during Gd-DTPA (Magnevist) or SPIO (Resovist) administration, T2-w UTSE, and PD-w UTSE sequences 10 minutes after SPIO administration. Regions of interest (ROIs) for contrast-to-noise ratio (CNR) and signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) were drawn in consensus by two radiologists. Results PD-w SPIO-enhanced images (23.5 ± 5.5) showed higher liver-to-lesion CNR than T1-w GRE Gd-DTPA-enhanced images (13.5 ± 6.1) 1 day after RFA (P , 0.05). At all other timepoints, liver-to-lesion CNR of PD-w and T2-w SPIO-enhanced images did not differ significantly from T1-w GRE Gd-DTPA-enhanced images (P , 0.05). Nonenhanced T2-w images revealed lower liver-to-lesion CNR (7.0 ± 7.5/6.5 ± 5.9/6.8 ± 5.0, 1 day/2 weeks/4 weeks, respectively) than T2-w SPIO-enhanced (17.4 ± 4.8/15.3 ± 4.5/14.2 ± 5.7), PD-w SPIO-enhanced (23.5 ± 5.5/16.9 ± 3.6, 1 day/2 weeks), and T1-w Gd-DTPA-enhanced (15.3 ± 3.6/12.7 ± 3.5, 2/4 weeks) images (P , 0.05). Liver-to-lesion CNR of SPIO-enhanced dynamic T1-w GRE images after 30, 80, 150, and 240 seconds did not change significantly over time (P , 0.05). Conclusion One day after RFA lesion conspicuity on PD-w ferucarbotran-enhanced images is better than on T1-w GRE Gd-DTPA-enhanced images. At all other timepoints, ferucarbotran is not superior to gadolinium. Ferucarbotran- and gadolinium-enhanced images improve lesion conspicuity compared with nonenhanced T2-w images at all timepoints. J. Magn. Reson. Imaging 2008;28:263,270. © 2008 Wiley-Liss, Inc. [source]


Non-heart-beating donor porcine livers: The adverse effect of cooling

LIVER TRANSPLANTATION, Issue 1 2005
Srikanth Reddy
Normothermic preservation has been shown to be advantageous in an experimental model of preservation of non-heart-beating donor (NHBD) livers, which have undergone significant warm ischemic injury. The logistics of clinical organ retrieval might dictate a period of cold preservation prior to warm perfusion. We have investigated the effects of a brief period of cold preservation on NHBD livers prior to normothermic preservation. Porcine livers were subjected to 60 minutes of warm ischaemia and then assigned to following groups: Group W (n = 5), normothermic preservation for 24 hours; and Group C (n = 6), cold preservation in University of Wisconsin solution for 1 hour followed by normothermic preservation for 23 hours (total preservation time, 24 hours). Synthetic function (bile production and factor V production) and cellular damage were compared on the ex vivo circuit during preservation. There was no significant difference in the synthetic function of the livers (bile production and factor V production). Markers of hepatocellular damage (alanine aminotransferase and aspartate aminotransferase release), sinusoidal endothelial cell dysfunction (hyaluronic acid), and Kupffer cell injury (,-galactosidase) were significantly higher in Group C. The histology of the livers at the end of perfusion was similar. In conclusion, a brief-period cold preservation prior to normothermic perfusion maintains the synthetic function and metabolic activity but results in significant hepatocellular damage, sinusoidal endothelial cell dysfunction, and Kupffer cell injury. Transplant studies are required to establish whether livers treated in this way are viable for transplantation. (Liver Transpl 2005;11:35,38.) [source]


Interspecies differences in hepatic Ca2+ -ATPase activity and the effect of cold preservation on porcine liver Ca2+ -ATPase function

LIVER TRANSPLANTATION, Issue 2 2001
Piotr K. Janicki MD
The accumulation of intracellular calcium ([Ca2+]i) caused by ischemia-reperfusion during liver transplantation has been implicated as a factor leading to primary graft nonfunction. Plasma membrane (PM) and endoplasmic reticulum (ER) Ca2+ -adenosinetriphosphatases (ATPases) are the primary transporters that maintain [Ca2+]i homeostasis in the liver. We hypothesized that the porcine liver is better than the rat liver as a model for the study of human liver Ca2+ -ATPase activity. We also hypothesized that cold preservation would depress Ca2+ -ATPase activity in the porcine liver. Pig and rat livers were harvested, and human liver samples were obtained from surgical resection specimens. All were preserved with University of Wisconsin solution, and porcine livers were also preserved on ice for 2 to 18 hours. Ca2+ -ATPase activity was measured after incubation with 45Ca2+ and adenosine triphosphate in the presence of specific Ca2+ -ATPase inhibitors. Porcine PM and ER Ca2+ -ATPase activities were 0.47 ± 0.03 and 1.57 ± 0.10 nmol of Ca2+/mg of protein/min, respectively. This was not significantly different from human liver, whereas rat liver was significantly greater at 2.60 ± 0.03 and 9.2 ± 0.9 nmol of Ca2+/mg of protein/min, respectively. We conclude that the Ca2+ -ATPase activity in the pig liver is equivalent to that of human liver, and thus, the pig liver is a better model than the rat liver. Cold preservation studies showed a significant decrease in porcine hepatic PM Ca2+ -ATPase activity after 4 hours of storage and near-total inhibition after 12 hours. Porcine hepatic ER Ca2+ -ATPase activity showed a 45% decrease in activity by 12 hours and a 69% decrease by 18 hours. We conclude that cold ischemia at clinically relevant times depresses PM Ca2+ -ATPase more than ER Ca2+ -ATPase activity in pig liver homogenates. [source]