European Journal of Cardio-Thoracic Surgery, Vol 10, 1011-1014, Copyright © 1996 by European Association for Cardio-thoracic Surgery
Right lung transplantation followed by left pneumonectomy in the rat
AT Kawaguchi, T Mizuta, M Shirai, H Ishibashi-Ueda, H Machida and Y Kawashima
First Department of Surgery, Osaka University Medical School, Japan.
OBJECTIVE: To develop a rodent lung transplant model which depends on graft
function for survival, total microsutureless lung transplantation was
carried out and followed by contralateral native pneumonectomy in the rat.
METHODS: Total non-microsuture right lung transplantation was undertaken
using a cuff technique with anastomotic areas twice as big as those for the
left lung transplantation. Inbred rats received either right (n = 10) or
left lung isograft (n = 10) with non-microsuture techniques and underwent
contralateral native pneumonectomy 2 weeks later to test the function of
the grafted lung. RESULTS: While none of the left lung recipients could be
disconnected from the respirator after right pneumonectomy, eight of ten
right lung recipients tolerated left pneumonectomy, increased body weight
and regained exercise capacity (oxygen uptake 49 +/- 4 ml/kg per min)
comparable to that of control rats undergoing right hilar stripping and
left pneumonectomy. CONCLUSIONS: The results suggest that the grafted right
lung, but not the left lung, allows survival, growth and exercise of the
recipient. Right lung transplantation followed by native left pneumonectomy
may serve as a physiologic model of lung transplantation in the rat.
