Name: ex vivo hepatic perfusion through the portal vein in mouse
Uploaded: 2022-03-09T12:30:00
Description: Watch this Scientific Journal Video about Ex Vivo Hepatic Perfusion Through the Portal Vein in Mouse at JoVE.com

This work was supported by funding from the National Institutes of Health (R01-DK105346, P41-GM122698, 5U2C-DK119889). A portion of this work was performed in the McKnight Brain Institute at the National High Magnetic Field Laboratory&#39;s Advanced Magnetic Resonance Imaging and Spectroscopy (AMRIS) Facility, which is supported by the National Science Foundation Cooperative Agreement No. DMR-1644779 and the State of Florida.

Experiments involving mice were handled in compliance with the University of Florida Institutional Animal Care and Use Committee (protocol number #201909320). The mouse strain used was C57BL/6J; all mice were male. This method is generally applicable for studies using other standard mouse strains as well. This surgery is optimally performed by two individuals working together.
1. Initial set-up
<ol>
	<li>Perfuse livers with perfusate containing Krebs-Henseleit electrolytes<s...

<ol>
	<li>Ragavan, M., McLeod, M. A., Giacalone, A. G., Merritt, M. E. <a target="_blank" href="http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?db=PubMed&cmd=Search&doptcmdl=Citation&defaultField=Title+Word&term=Hyperpolarized+Dihydroxyacetone+Is+a+Sensitive+Probe+of+Hepatic+Gluconeogenic+State.">Hyperpolarized Dihydroxyacetone Is a Sensitive Probe of Hepatic Gluconeogenic State.</a> Metabolites. 11 (7), 441 (2021).</li><li>Lumata, L. <a target="_blank" href="http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?db=PubMed&cmd=Search&doptcmdl=Citation&defaultField=Title+Word&term=Hyperpolarized+(13)C+Magnetic+Resonance+and+Its+Use+in+Metabolic+Assessment+of+Cultured+Cells+and+Perfused+Organs.">Hyperpolarized (13)C Magnetic Resonance and Its Use in Metabolic Assessment of Cultured Cells and Perfused Organs.</a> Methods in Enzymology. 561, 561-573 (2015).</li><li>Moreno, K. X., et al. <a target="_blank" href="http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?db=PubMed&cmd=Search&doptcmdl=Citation&defaultField=Title+Word&term=Real-time+detection+of+hepatic+gluconeogenic+and+glycogenolytic+states+using+hyperpolarized+[2-13C]+dihydroxyacetone.">Real-time detection of hepatic gluconeogenic and glycogenolytic states using hyperpolarized [2-13C] dihydroxyacetone.</a> The Journal of Biological Chemistry. 289 (52), 35859-35867 (2014).</li><li>Moreno, K. X., et al. <a target="_blank" href="http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?db=PubMed&cmd=Search&doptcmdl=Citation&defaultField=Title+Word&term=Hyperpolarized+&#948;-[1-13C]+gluconolactone+as+a+probe+of+the+pentose+phosphate+pathway.">Hyperpolarized &#948;-[1-13C] gluconolactone as a probe of the pentose phosphate pathway.</a> NMR in Biomedicine. 30 (6), (2017).</li><li>Merritt, M. E., Harrison, C., Sherry, A. D., Malloy, C. R., Burgess, S. 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W., et al. <a target="_blank" href="http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?db=PubMed&cmd=Search&doptcmdl=Citation&defaultField=Title+Word&term=A+Small+Animal+Model+of+Ex+Vivo+Normothermic+Liver+Perfusion.">A Small Animal Model of Ex Vivo Normothermic Liver Perfusion.</a> Journal of Visualized Experiments: JoVE. (136), e57541 (2018).</li><li>Collins, J. B., Song, J., Mahabir, R. C. <a target="_blank" href="http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?db=PubMed&cmd=Search&doptcmdl=Citation&defaultField=Title+Word&term=Onset+and+duration+of+intradermal+mixtures+of+bupivacaine+and+lidocaine+with+epinephrine.">Onset and duration of intradermal mixtures of bupivacaine and lidocaine with epinephrine.</a> The Canadian Journal of Plastic Surgery. 21 (1), 51-53 (2013).</li><li>. Medical Dictionary Available from: <a target="_blank" href="https://www.merriam-webster.com/medical">https://www.merriam-webster.com/medical</a> (2022)</li><li>Thorpe, D. 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This surgical procedure is challenging and requires extensive practice to achieve reproducible results. Isoflurane and carrier gas should be adjusted as needed to maintain the viability of the animal through as much of the surgical procedure as possible. Environment, time of day, age, weight, and several other factors will affect anesthesia. Weight, diet, strain of mice and age could affect surgery as fat buildup can interfere with visualizing the portal vein. When taping the paws down, care must be taken to not apply an...

Ex vivo perfusions are crucial in the study of hepatic metabolism, and perfusion through the portal vein is the standard for these studies. In order to study hepatic metabolism in isolation, the liver must be resected from the body to avoid complications arising from metabolism in other organs (i.e., whole-body metabolism) and to exert control over hormone availability (insulin, glucagon, etc.). This approach can be essential for understanding the effects of diseases such as diabetes, NAFLD, and NASH on hepatic metabolism as well as mechanisms of drug action. This article serves as a guide to hepatic resection and perfusion. We have developed a streamlined procedure to perform these metabolic liver studies with sufficient rigor and reproducibility. If the surgery is not performed correctly, there is pronounced variability in the metabolic data obtained. We describe an organized method to perform portal vein catheterization and liver resection in the context of metabolic studies in situ in a nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) spectrometer, as described in the literature1,2,3,4,5.
Currently, there is no literature describing an ex vivo hepatic perfusion using a glass column within an NMR. Nor is there a video or text publication providing a clear example of how to perform the procedure with the mouse liver, specifically, demonstrating how to catheterize the portal vein, resect a liver, transfer, and hang the liver onto a glass column. As the genetically modified mouse is ubiquitously used for studying liver metabolism, this is an essential procedure that deserves a complete description. Liver perfusion surgeries are not new, but this article is a gold standard method accompanied by a video demonstrating the technical excellence described in this paper to aid everyone interested in this procedure. The method presented here would be best applied to real-time metabolism to detect the function and turnover of metabolites in disease models.
This method uses a 100 cm water-jacketed glass column, which allows the liver to hang at the bottom of the cannula encapsulated by perfusate inside an NMR tube. Heated water in the glass jacket is used to control perfusate temperature. A thin layer oxygenator is pressurized with 95%/5% O2/CO2 for pH control. By using three separate pumps, the perfusate column height is set, which provides constant pressure to the liver. Flow rates are not controlled beyond the application of constant pressure (Figure 1). To confirm the liver is appropriately functioning, oxygen measurements are taken along with flow rates. In our hands, this set of preconditions leads to highly repeatable NMR experiments for the assessment of liver metabolic function.

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	<tbody>
		<tr>
			<td>1 mL Luer-Lock Single Use Sterile Disposable Syringe</td>
			<td>N/A</td>
			<td>N/A</td>
			<td>Non-specific Brand</td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>100 cm Water Jacketed Glass Column</td>
			<td>N/A</td>
			<td>N/A</td>
			<td>Custom Made</td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>2-0 Silk Suture</td>
			<td>Braintree Scientific</td>
			<td>N/A</td>
			<td></td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>22 Gauge Catherter 1 in. Without Safety</td>
			<td>Terumo</td>
			<td>SRFF2225</td>
			<td></td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>23 G 0.75 in. Hypodemeric Needles</td>
			<td>Exel International</td>
			<td>26407</td>
			<td></td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>27 G 1.5 in. Hypodemeric Needles</td>
			<td>Exel International</td>
			<td>26426</td>
			<td></td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>4x4 in. Surgical Platform</td>
			<td>N/A</td>
			<td>N/A</td>
			<td>Custom Made</td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>70% Alcohol Wipe</td>
			<td>N/A</td>
			<td>N/A</td>
			<td>Non-specific Brand</td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>Circulating Water Bath</td>
			<td>MS Lauda</td>
			<td>N/A</td>
			<td>Model no longer manufactured</td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>Cotton Tip Applicator</td>
			<td>N/A</td>
			<td>N/A</td>
			<td>Non-specific Brand</td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>Delicate Operating Scissors; Straight; Sharp-Sharp; 30mm Blade Length; 4 3/4 &#34;</td>
			<td>Roboz</td>
			<td>RS-6702</td>
			<td></td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>Dumont #5/45 Forceps</td>
			<td>Fine Scientific Tools</td>
			<td>11251-35</td>
			<td></td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>Dumont #7 - Fine Forceps</td>
			<td>Fine Scientific Tools</td>
			<td>11274-20</td>
			<td></td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>Hemostats</td>
			<td>Fine Scientific Tools</td>
			<td>13015-14</td>
			<td></td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>Heparin Sodium Injectable 1000 units/mL</td>
			<td>RX Generics</td>
			<td>71288-0402-02</td>
			<td></td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>Isoflurane</td>
			<td>Patterson Veterinary</td>
			<td>14043-0704-06</td>
			<td></td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>Lidocaine HCl 2%</td>
			<td>VEDCO Inc.</td>
			<td>50989-0417-12</td>
			<td></td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>Membrane-Thin-Layer Oxygenator</td>
			<td>Radnoti</td>
			<td>N/A</td>
			<td></td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>Metzenbaum Scissors; Curved; Blunt; 27 mm Blade Length; 5 &#34;</td>
			<td>Roboz</td>
			<td>RS-6013</td>
			<td></td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>Oxygen Meter System</td>
			<td>Hanstech Instruments Ltd.</td>
			<td>N/A</td>
			<td></td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>Saline 0.9% Solution</td>
			<td>N/A</td>
			<td>N/A</td>
			<td>Saline is made in lab</td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>Scale</td>
			<td>N/A</td>
			<td>N/A</td>
			<td>Non-specific Brand</td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>&#160;Variable Speed Analog Console Pump Systems</td>
			<td>Cole Palmer</td>
			<td>N/A</td>
			<td>Models are custom per application</td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>Weigh boats</td>
			<td>N/A</td>
			<td>N/A</td>
			<td>Non-specific Brand</td>
		</tr>
	</tbody>
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ex vivo hepatic perfusion through the portal vein in mouse

Metabolic diseases such as diabetes, pre-diabetes, non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD), and nonalcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH) are becoming increasingly common. Ex vivo liver perfusions allow for a comprehensive analysis of liver metabolism using nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR), in nutritional conditions that can be rigorously controlled. As in silico simulations remain a primarily theoretical means of assessing hormone actions and the effects of pharmaceutical intervention, the perfused liver remains one of the most valuable test beds for understanding hepatic metabolism. As these studies guide basic insights into hepatic physiology, results must be accurate and reproducible. The greatest factor in the reproducibility of ex vivo hepatic perfusion is the quality of surgery. Therefore, we have introduced an organized and streamlined method to perform ex vivo mouse liver perfusions in the context of in situ NMR experiments. We also describe a unique application and discuss common issues encountered in these studies. The overall purpose is to provide an uncomplicated guide to a technique we have refined over several years that we deem the golden standard for obtaining reproducible results in hepatic resections and perfusions in the context of in situ NMR experiments. The distance to the center of the field for the magnet as well as the inaccessibility of the tissue to intervention during the NMR experiment makes our methods novel.

Liver function is primarily assessed by oxygen consumption and flow rate. A flow rate of 4-8 mL/min and oxygen consumption of 1 &#181;mol/min.g is typical. These measures will vary depending on specific experimental conditions and biological differences.
The exact amount of isoflurane used will depend on the type of anesthesia system being used as well as the environment and age/weight of the mouse. During the surgery, the isoflurane and delivery gas do not change, although some changes may be...

Watch this Scientific Journal Video about Ex Vivo Hepatic Perfusion Through the Portal Vein in Mouse at JoVE.com

Ex Vivo Hepatic Perfusion Through the Portal Vein in Mouse

The protocol describes a straightforward method of resectioning an intact mouse liver for metabolic studies through portal vein perfusion.

Ex Vivo Hepatic Perfusion Through the Portal Vein in Mouse

Metabolic diseases such as diabetes, pre-diabetes, non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD), and nonalcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH) are becoming ...

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