Related Experiment Video
Updated: Jul 18, 2026
Porcine Liver Transplantation Without Veno-Venous Bypass As an Extended Criteria Donor Model
Published on: August 17, 2022
Significant survival prolongation in pigs with fulminant hepatic failure treated with a novel microgravity-based
Boris Hochleitner1, Paul Hengster, Herwig Bucher
1Department of General and Transplant Surgery, Innsbruck University Hospital, Innsbruck, Austria. boris_hochleitner@hotmail.com
Abstract:
The aim of this study was to evaluate the efficacy and safety of our novel Innsbruck Bioartificial Liver (IBAL; US patent no. 10/641275), which contains aggregates of porcine hepatocytes grown under simulated microgravity, in a porcine model of fulminant hepatic failure (FHF). FHF was induced by a combination of 75-80% liver resection and ischemia of the remnant segments for 60 min in 12 pigs. Two experimental groups were studied: the control group (n = 5) received standard intensive care and the study group (n = 5) received IBAL treatment. The survival of pigs with FHF was significantly prolonged by about 150% with IBAL treatment as compared to controls (controls: 20.4 +/- 2.8 h, IBAL: 51.0 +/- 2.2 h; P = 0.00184). In addition, intracranial pressure, blood ammonia, lactate, aspartate aminotransferase, and alkaline phosphatase levels were lower in the IBAL group than in controls, indicating metabolic activity of porcine hepatocytes in the bioreactor. No adverse effects were observed.
