Development of a Porcine Slaughterhouse Kidney Perfusion Model

Machine perfusion techniques are becoming standard care in the clinical donation and transplantation setting. However, more research is needed to understand the mechanisms of the protective effects of machine perfusion. For preservation related experiments, porcine kidneys are acceptable alternatives to human kidneys, because of their size and similar physiology. In this experiment, the use of slaughterhouse kidneys was evaluated with normothermic kidney perfusion (NKP), thereby avoiding the use of laboratory animals. Porcine kidneys were derived from two local abattoirs. To induce different degrees of injury, different warm ischemic times and preservation techniques were used. After preservation, kidneys were reperfused for 4 h with two different NKP solutions to test renal function and damage. The effect of the preservation technique or a short warm ischemic time was clearly seen in functional markers, such as creatinine clearance and fractional sodium excretion levels, as well as in the generic damage marker lactate dehydrogenase (LDH). Porcine slaughterhouse kidneys are a useful alternative to laboratory animals for transplantation- and preservation-related research questions. To maintain kidney function during NKP, a short warm ischemic time or hypothermic machine perfusion during the preservation phase are mandatory.