An isolated rat lung perfusion system for use in tobacco smoke studies

An isolated rat lung perfusion system has been developed for use in tobacco smoke studies. The lungs are ventilated by means of subatmospheric (negative) pressure produced through operation of an artificial thorax. The system enables standard respiratory conditions to be employed and so eliminates variations in animal breathing characteristics. The various tests of viability which have been carried out have shown that the preparations are viable for periods of at least 1 hr. It was also demonstrated that transfer of 14C-nicotine from smoke to perfusate was rapid and linear over the period of smoke exposure and that first-pass metabolism of nicotine was of little significance.