Histotripsy of the prostate using a commercial system in a canine model.

Purpose: Histotripsy is a focused ultrasound technology that uses controlled acoustic cavitation to homogenize targeted tissue. We assessed local and systemic effects after histotripsy treatment with the Vortx RX® system in a canine model. The system was not approved for human use at the time of the study.

Salmon thrombin-fibrinogen dressing allows greater survival and preserves distal blood flow compared to standard kaolin gauze in coagulopathic Swine with a standardized lethal femoral artery injury.

We have previously shown that lyophilized salmon thrombin and fibrinogen (STF) embedded in a dissolvable dextran dressing is as efficacious as Combat Gauze (CG) with regard to controlling hemorrhage and survival in non-coagulopathic swine with femoral artery lacerations. A major limitation of currently available advanced field dressings is the inability to control hemorrhage in coagulopathic casualties because of the exhaustion of host coagulation proteins. We tested the hypothesis that the STF dressing would be better able to control hemorrhage and prolong survival in coagulopathic swine compared to CG.

A salmon thrombin-fibrinogen dressing controls hemorrhage in a swine model compared to standard kaolin-coated gauze.

Background: Battlefield hemorrhage remains the primary cause of death in potentially survivable combat injuries with noncompressible hemorrhage. Fibrin dressings have great potential for reducing mortality, however are limited by cost, availability, and disease transmission.

Methods: Dressings comprising a soluble dextran dressing with lyophilized salmon thrombin and fibrinogen (STF) were tested against Combat Gauze (CG) as a control in a standard swine femoral artery hemorrhage model.

Cardiac xenotransplantation: recent preclinical progress with 3-month median survival.

Objectives: Transplantation is limited by a lack of human organ donors. Organs derived from animals, most likely the pig, represent a potential solution to this problem. For the heart, 90-day median graft survival of life-supporting pig hearts transplanted to nonhuman primates has been considered a reasonable standard for entry into the clinical arena.

Prevention, detection, and management of early bacterial and fungal infections in a preclinical cardiac xenotransplantation model that achieves prolonged survival.

Background: We analyzed bacterial and fungal infectious complications in a cohort of 16 consecutive experiments with the longest surviving cardiac xenografts to date.

Methods: Transgenic, porcine-to-baboon, heterotopic (abdomen) cardiac xenotransplantation was performed in 16 consecutive experiments, using rapamycin, tacrolimus, corticosteroids, anti-CD20 monoclonal antibody, and an alpha-Gal-PEG polymer, as immunosuppression. Prophylactic anti-microbials included i.

Cardiac xenotransplantation: progress toward the clinic.

Background: Animal organs could satisfy the demand for solid organ transplants, which currently exceeds the limited human donor supply. Hyperacute rejection, the initial immune barrier to successful xenotransplantation, has been overcome with pig donors transgenic for human complement regulatory proteins. Delayed xenograft rejection, thought to be mediated by anti-pig antibodies predominantly to Gal antigens, is currently regarded as the major barrier to successful xenotransplantation.

Reactivation of porcine cytomegalovirus through allogeneic stimulation.

Reactivation of latent porcine cytomegalovirus after coculture of peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs) from pigs with different genetic backgrounds was investigated. Nine of 10 allogeneic coculture pairs were PCR (DNA) positive, whereas 7 coculture pairs had porcine cytomegalovirus (PCMV) RNA, an indication of virus replication. The cell subpopulations harboring PCMV were monocytes and CD8+ T cells.