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Human Hepatocyte Isolation: Does Portal Vein Embolization Affect the Outcome?
Martin Kluge1, Anja Reutzel-Selke1, Hendrik Napierala1
11 General, Visceral, and Transplantation Surgery, Experimental Surgery and Regenerative Medicine, Charité-Universitätsmedizin Berlin , Berlin, Germany .
Tissue Engineering. Part C, Methods
|October 10, 2015
Summary
Preoperative portal vein embolization (PVE) does not impact the isolation of primary human hepatocytes. Liver tissue from PVE patients yields comparable cell numbers and viability to non-PVE tissue, ensuring suitability for research and regenerative medicine.
Area of Science:
- Hepatology
- Regenerative Medicine
- Surgical Oncology
Background:
- Primary human hepatocytes are crucial for drug development, disease modeling, and cell-based therapies.
- Preoperative portal vein embolization (PVE) is employed to enhance future liver remnant hypertrophy before major liver resection.
- The impact of PVE on the quality and yield of isolated primary human hepatocytes remains underexplored.
Purpose of the Study:
- To evaluate the effect of PVE on the efficiency and quality of primary human hepatocyte isolation.
- To compare hepatocyte yield and viability from PVE-treated versus non-PVE liver tissue.
- To assess the metabolic function of hepatocytes isolated from PVE-treated livers.
Main Methods:
- Primary human hepatocytes were isolated from 190 partial hepatectomy specimens using collagenase perfusion and Percoll purification.
- Liver tissue from 27 patients who underwent PVE prior to surgery was compared with tissue from 163 patients without PVE.
- Hepatocyte yield, viability, and metabolic parameters (transaminases, urea, albumin, VEGF) were assessed post-isolation and during culture.
Main Results:
- No significant differences were observed in donor or isolation parameters (e.g., age, sex, liver weight, cold ischemia time) between PVE and non-PVE groups.
- Mean initial viable cell yield (10.16 vs. 9.70 × 10^6 cells/g) and viability (77.8% vs. 74.4%) were comparable between the groups.
- Post-Percoll purification, viable cell yield and viability remained similar, and PVE did not affect enzyme leakage or metabolic activity of cultured hepatocytes.
Conclusions:
- Preoperative portal vein embolization does not compromise the isolation of primary human hepatocytes.
- Liver tissue from PVE-treated patients is a suitable source for hepatocyte isolation, yielding results equivalent to non-PVE tissue.
- These findings support the use of PVE in liver surgery without negatively impacting the availability of primary human hepatocytes for research and therapeutic applications.
