Comprehensive Evaluation of a Donated After Circulatory Death (DCD) Donor Liver Model in Minipigs

Abstract

BACKGROUND Graft livers from donors after death from circulatory disease (DCD) often suffer injury from severe ischemia or hypoxia before resection. Thus, earlier evaluation of these livers is critical for the survival of recipients. MATERIAL AND METHODS In our study, 18 minipigs, as DCD donor liver models, were evenly divided into a warm ischemia time (WIT) group and a hypoxia plus ischemia group. Another 18 minipigs served as recipients and were implanted with the donor livers of the DCD models. miR-122 levels and hepatic function were examined before and after liver transplantation. RESULTS Results indicated that increased miR-122 levels appeared in the early stages of ischemia and hypoxia. Increases in ALT and GGT levels occurred earlier than changes in TBil. CONCLUSIONS The expression levels of miR-122 in donor liver might play a role in the evaluation of organ injury. Changes in donor liver functions were more sensitive to ischemia than hypoxia in this established porcine DCD model.

Figure 1

Representative donor liver tissue sections after WITs of 0 (A), 10 (B), 20 (C), and 30 (D) min (H&E staining with 200× magnification).

Figure 2

Representative donor liver tissue sections after hypoxia times of 0 (A), 15 (B), 30 (C), and 60 (D) min plus WIT 20 min (H&E staining with 200× magnification).

Figure 3

Relative miR-122 levels in donor livers vs. normal controls after warm ischemia injury alone (A) and after different durations of hypoxia plus WIT 20 min (B) (* P<0.05, ** P<0.01, *** P<0.001).