Oxidative stress and apoptosis in a pig model of brain death (BD) and living donation (LD).

Background: As organ shortage is increasing, the acceptance of marginal donors increases, which might result in poor organ function and patient survival. Mostly, organ damage is caused during brain death (BD), cold ischemic time (CIT) or after reperfusion due to oxidative stress or the induction of apoptosis. The aim of this study was to study a panel of genes involved in oxidative stress and apoptosis and compare these findings with immunohistochemistry from a BD and living donation (LD) pig model and after cold ischemia time (CIT).

Energy status of pig donor organs after ischemia is independent of donor type.

Background: Literature is controversial whether organs from living donors have a better graft function than brain dead (BD) and non-heart-beating donor organs. Success of transplantation has been correlated with high-energy phosphate (HEP) contents of the graft.

Methods: HEP contents in heart, liver, kidney, and pancreas from living, BD, and donation after cardiac death in a pig model (n=6 per donor type) were evaluated systematically.

Effect of oxidative stress and endotoxin on human serum albumin in brain-dead organ donors.

Albumin, among other molecules, binds and detoxifies endotoxin in healthy people. Oxidative stress leads to protein oxidation and thus to the impaired binding properties of albumin. This property, in combination with increased gut permeability, leads to the appearance of endotoxin in the systemic circulation and to impaired organ function.

Everolimus in different combinations as maintenance immunosuppressive therapy in heart transplant recipients.

Objectives: We examined the experiences of heart transplant recipients receiving everolimus as maintenance therapy in different combinations over a long time.

Materials And Methods: Between 2004 and 2009, forty patients (29 men, 11 women; mean age, 51.6 y) were switched from a routine immunosuppressive regimen to everolimus.

A 10min "no-touch" time - is it enough in DCD? A DCD animal study.

Donation after cardiac death (DCD) is under investigation because of the lack of human donor organs. Required times of cardiac arrest vary between 75s and 27min until the declaration of the patients' death worldwide. The aim of this study was to investigate brain death in pigs after different times of cardiac arrest with subsequent cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) as a DCD paradigm.