Effect of glutathione on hypothermic lung preservation

Three groups of rats were used to test the effect of glutathione in hypothermic lung preservation. In the Normal Group (N = 8), lung function was studied immediately after removal without preservation. In the Euro-Collins (EC) Group (N = 8), the lungs were flushed with cooled Euro-Collins solution and preserved in EC solution for 24 hours. In the glutathione (GSH) Group (N = 8), glutathione (3 mM/L) was added to cooled Euro-Collins solution for perfusion and preservation. Lung function studies were performed by using living donor rats for perfusion. Venous blood from the host rat perfused the isolated lung, and the blood returned from the lung was pumped back into the internal carotid artery of the host rat. Oxygen tension in the returned blood (PvO2) in the Normal Group was higher than that in either the EC Group or the GSH Group. Pulmonary vascular resistance and airway resistance were much lower in the Normal Group than in the EC Group and GSH Group. Lung tissue wet/dry weight ratio after perfusion was 6.25 in the Normal Group, which was lower than that in the GSH Group (8.69, p < 0.05) and much lower than that in the EC Group (6.82, p < 0.05). Severe pulmonary edema and hemorrhage occurred after 30 minutes of perfusion in the EC Group, whereas a 60-minute perfusion was performed in the Normal and GSH Groups. The results indicated that rat lungs were better preserved with glutathione, but the effect was not dramatic.