An automated and portable low-flow pulsatile perfusion system for organ preservation

While machine preservation reduces the incidence of delayed graft function in renal transplant recipients, it is only used in 10% of kidney transplantations. The performance of our portable, lowflow-pulsatile organ perfusion system was examined in a canine kidney autotransplantation model. Grafts were stored for 72 h by simple cold preservation in University of Wisconsin (UW) solution, or by high or low-flow machine preservation. After preservation, the grafts were autotransplanted and the animals were followed for 15 days. Graft function was better in machine-preserved kidneys. Tissue biochemistry indicated that machine preservation resulted in higher levels of adenine nucleotides and better histological integrity than the cold storage. While histology and biochemistry of machine-preserved groups were similar, electromicroscopy of high-flow grafts showed mild accumulation of intravenous debris and endothelial swelling. This study shows that a simplified machine perfusion technique is effective for organ preservation.