A Porcine Heterotopic Heart Transplantation Protocol for Delivery of Therapeutics to a Cardiac Allograft

Summary

We present a protocol for utilizing a normothermic ex vivo sanguinous perfusion system for the delivery of therapeutics to an entire cardiac allograft in a porcine heterotopic heart transplant model.

Abstract

Cardiac transplantation is the gold standard treatment for end-stage heart failure. However, it remains limited by the number of available donor hearts and complications such as primary graft dysfunction and graft rejection. The recent clinical use of an ex vivo perfusion device in cardiac transplantation introduces a unique opportunity for treating cardiac allografts with therapeutic interventions to improve function and avoid deleterious recipient responses. Establishing a translational, large-animal model for therapeutic delivery to the entire allograft is essential for testing novel therapeutic approaches in cardiac transplantation. The porcine, heterotopic heart transplantation model in the intraabdominal position serves as an excellent model for assessing the effects of novel interventions and the immunopathology of graft rejection. This model additionally offers long-term survival for the pig, given that the graft is not required to maintain the recipient's circulation. The aim of this protocol is to provide a reproducible and robust approach for achieving ex vivo delivery of a therapeutic to the entire cardiac allograft prior to transplantation and provide technical details to perform a survival heterotopic transplant of the ex vivo perfused heart.

Introduction

Heart failure is a condition that affects an estimated 6 million adults in the United States and is projected to increase to 8 million adults by the year 2030¹. Cardiac transplantation is the gold standard treatment for end stage heart failure. However, it is not without its limitations and complications. It remains limited by the number of available donor hearts, primary graft dysfunction, rejection of the heart, and the side effects of long-term immunosuppression². These limitations are particularly important in young recipients who may experience allograft failure and require subsequent re-transplantation to achieve n....

Protocol

NOTE: Two female Yucatan pigs are selected, with one designated to be the cardiac graft donor and the other the recipient. Pigs aged 6-8 months, weighing approximately 30 kg, and having compatible blood types are recommended. The overview of the protocol is demonstrated in Figure 1. Housing and the treatment procedures for the pigs are performed in accordance with the guidelines of the Animal Care and Use Committee of Duke University Medical Center.

1.

Discussion

Delivery of therapeutics during ex vivo perfusion in cardiac transplantation offers a strategy to modify the allograft and potentially improve transplant outcomes. The protocol presented here incorporates the state-of-the-art normothermic ex vivo sanguinous perfusion storage and offers promising potential to test isolated delivery of cell, gene, or immunotherapies to the allograft^11,12,13. To date, cardiac deli.......

Materials

Name	Company	Catalog Number	Comments
0 Looped Maxon suture	Covidien	GMM-341L	Used to close fascia of the laparotomy incision
0 Silk ties	Medtronic, Inc	S346
18 G Angiocath	BD	381144	Used to de-air the left ventricle of the donor heart after implantation
20 Fr LV vent	Medtronic, Inc	12002
2-0 Silk sutures	Ethicon, Inc.	SA11G
2-0 Silk ties	Ethicon, Inc.	SA65H
2-0 Vicryl suture	Ethicon, Inc.	J259H
24 Fr venous cannula	Medtronic, Inc	68124
3-0 Prolene sutures	Ethicon, Inc.	8522
4-0 Monocryl suture	Ethicon, Inc.	Y469G
4-0 Prolene sutures	Ethicon, Inc.	8521
Animal hair cutting clipper	Wahl	8786-452
Aortic clamp	V. Mueller	CH6201
Army Navy retractor	V. Mueller	SU3660
ATF 40, Cell saver disposable set	Fresenius Kabi	9108494	Cell saver device insert
Balfour retractor	V. Mueller	SU3042	Used as an abdominal wall retractor
C.A.T.S cell saver	Fresenius Kabi	ES0019	Cell saver device used to wash donor blood
Cardiac defibrillator	Zoll	M Series	Cardiac defibrillator
Castro needle holder	V. Mueller	CH8589
CG4 iStat cartridges	Abbott	03P85-25	POC testing
CG8 iStat cartridges	Abbott	03P88-25	POC testing
DeBakey forceps	V. Mueller	CH5902
Electrocautery disposable pencil	Covidien	E2450H
Gerald forceps	V. Mueller	NL1451
Hemotherm 400CE Dual Reservoir Cooler/Heater	Cincinnati Sub-Zero	86022	Heater cooler used to regulate perfusion temperature on the ex vivo perfusion device
iSTAT 1	Abbott	04P75-03	POC testing device
Kocher clamp	V. Mueller	SU2790
Large clip applier	Sklar	50-4300
Large clips	Teleflex	4200
Large soft pledgets	Covidien	8886867901
Medium clip applier	Sklar	50-4335
Medium clips	Teleflex	2200
Metzenbaum scissor	V. Mueller	CH2006-001
No. 10 scalpel blade	Swann-Mortan	301	Used for skin incision
No. 11 scalpel blade	Kiato Plus	18111	Used for vascular incision
OCS device with base	TransMedics, Inc.		Ex vivo perfusion device
OCS disposable	TransMedics, Inc.		Ex vivo perfusion device insert with perfusion kits
Pacing cable	Remington Medical	FL-601-97
Pediatric cardioplegia catheter (4Fr)	Medtronic, Inc	10218	Used to deliver cardioplegia to the donor aortic root
Pediatric Foley catheter	Teleflex	RSH170003080	Placed pre-op to decompress the recipient's bladder
Potts scissors	V. Mueller	CH13038
Pressure bag x2 (1,000 mL)	Novaplus	V4010H	Used to deliver cardioplegia at a set pressure
Satinsky clamp	V. Mueller	CH7305	Vascular clamp used for creating anastomoses between donor heart and recipient vessels
Scissors	Felco	FELCO 200A-50	Used to perform sternotomy
Small hard pledgets	Covidien	8886867701
Sternal retractor	V. Mueller	CH6950-007
Temporary cardiac pacing wires	Ethicon, Inc.	TPW32
Temporary dual chamber pacemaker	Medtronic, Inc	5388	Cardiac pacing device
Tourniquet kit	Medtronic, Inc	79005	Rummel tourniquets
Umbilical tape	Covidien	8886861903
Vessel loops	Covidien	31145686