Intestinal preservation using a tailored luminal solution and aeration: A small animal study

Area of Science:

• Transplantation research
• Organ preservation techniques
• Gastrointestinal surgery

Background:

• Oxygenation during organ preservation may improve transplant outcomes, but data for intestinal preservation is limited.
• Static cold storage (SCS) is a standard method for organ preservation.
• Novel preservation solutions aim to mitigate ischemia-reperfusion injury.

Purpose of the Study:

• To compare the efficacy of static cold storage (SCS) with novel preservation strategies for rat intestinal grafts.
• To evaluate the impact of a luminal polyethylene glycol solution (PEG-GAs) with or without air insufflation on intestinal preservation.
• To assess histological and molecular changes in intestinal tissue after varying cold storage durations.

Main Methods:

• Rat small intestines were preserved using SCS, luminal PEG-GAs, or luminal PEG-GAs with air insufflation.
• Tissue samples were collected after 8, 14, and 24 hours of cold storage.
• Histological assessment and Western blot analysis were performed to evaluate tissue injury and protein expression.

Main Results:

• Intestinal grafts preserved with PEG-GAs (with or without air) showed reduced histological injury scores compared to SCS.
• Goblet cell depletion and tight junction protein (zonula occludens-1, claudin, occludin) disruption were less pronounced in PEG-GAs groups.
• Elevated caspase 3 expression, indicative of apoptosis, was observed in the SCS group.

Conclusions:

• Static cold storage leads to significant tissue and molecular damage in intestinal grafts within 8 hours.
• Luminal preservation with PEG-GAs offers a protective effect against intestinal injury during cold storage.
• Additional air insufflation did not provide significant benefits over luminal preservation alone.