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Abstract

Biology

Isolation of Primary Rat Hepatocytes with Multiparameter Perfusion Control

Published: April 5th, 2021

DOI:

10.3791/62289

1Department of Physiology & The Institute for Digital Medicine (WisDM), National University of Singapore, 2College of Agriculture and Biology, Zhongkai University of Agriculture and Engineering, 3Mechanobiology Institute, National University of Singapore, 4Institute of Bioengineering and Nanotechnology, A*STAR, 5NUS Graduate School for Integrative Sciences and Engineering, 6CAMP, Singapore-MIT Alliance for Research and Technology

* These authors contributed equally

Abstract

Primary hepatocytes are widely used in basic research on liver diseases and for toxicity testing in vitro. The two-step collagenase perfusion procedure for primary hepatocyte isolation is technically challenging, especially in portal vein cannulation. The procedure is also prone to occasional contamination and variations in perfusion conditions due to difficulties in the assembly, optimization, or maintenance of the perfusion setup. Here, a detailed protocol for an improved two-step collagenase perfusion procedure with multiparameter perfusion control is presented. Primary rat hepatocytes were successfully and reliably isolated by taking the necessary technical precautions at critical steps of the procedure, and by reducing the operational difficulty and mitigating the variability of perfusion parameters through the adoption of a special intravenous catheter, standardized sterile disposable tubing, temperature control, and real-time monitoring and alarm system. The isolated primary rat hepatocytes consistently exhibit high cell viability (85%-95%), yield (2-5 x 108 cells per 200-300 g rat) and functionality (albumin, urea and CYP activity). The procedure was complemented by an integrated perfusion system, which is compact enough to be set up in the laminar flow hood to ensure aseptic operation.

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Keywords Primary Rat Hepatocytes

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