Interspecies difference in liver-specific functions and biotransformation of testosterone of primary rat, porcine and human hepatocyte in an organotypical sandwich culture.

Interspecies difference is an important issue in toxicology research. We compared the potential in vitro metabolism of human, porcine and rat hepatocytes over 2 weeks in culture in an organotypical culture model which reflects the in vivo situation. All three species show similar LDH-rates.

Detoxification and endothelialization of glutaraldehyde-fixed bovine pericardium with titanium coating: a new technology for cardiovascular tissue engineering.

Background: Endothelial cell seeding of glutardialdehyde-fixed biological heart valves is hypothesized to improve biocompatibility and durability; however, the toxicity of glutardialdehyde prevents its use as a biological coating. Therefore, different detoxification strategies are applied, including surface coating with titanium, before in vitro endothelialization of glutaraldehyde-fixed bovine pericardium as the base material for prosthetic heart valves.

Methods And Results: Bovine pericardium was fixed with 0.

Development and characterization of a small-scale bioreactor based on a bioartificial hepatic culture model for predictive pharmacological in vitro screenings.

A vast majority of pharmacons are beset by possible interactions and side effects which have usually been tested in laboratory animals. However, better methods are needed to reduce the number of animal experiments and interspecies differences with respect to drug metabolism, as well as to provide a faster and more cost-effective way of analysis. These facts have led to the development of in vitro models based on isolated primary hepatocytes to better assess drug metabolism, interactions, and toxicity.

Cultivation of primary porcine hepatocytes in an OXY-HFB for use as a bioartificial liver device.

Bioreactors being developed for bioartificial liver devices vary greatly in their construction. Until now, primary liver cells were cultivated either in sandwich configuration, as spheroids, or in special hollow fiber systems. Primary hepatocytes are demanding on their environment and have a high oxygen consumption.

Bioreactor developments for tissue engineering applications by the example of the bioartificial liver.

Tissue engineering is the application of the principles and methods of engineering and the life sciences towards the development of biological substitutes to restore, maintain or improve functions. It is an area which is emerging in importance worldwide. This article is to show the developments in tissue engineering research by the example of the bioartificial liver.