That's nice, and all, but where in the report does it say that the
organs in question have been indeed vitrified?
Perhaps a subject line with "breakthrough in reducing cryoprotectant
toxicity" would have been more appropriate.
Truly an important result, empirically showing feasibility of
extracting, loading, unloading and retransplanting a live animal
kidney with cryoprotectant concentrations sufficient for
vitrification, but this hasn't gone all the way yet. Nor is this about
brains (mmmh, brains). So put the champagner back into the fridge,
willya?
Doug Skrecky writes:
> Permanent life support by kidneys perfused with a
> vitrifiable (7.5 molar) cryoprotectant solution
>
> Transplantation 70(1): 51-7 July 2000
>
> Kheirabadi BS, Fahy GM
>
> BACKGROUND: Vitrification (glass formation) is a
> potential method for indefinite term organ preservation
> that eliminates all of the conventional problems of
> freezing and thawing. A 7.5 M mixture of cryoprotectants
> known as VS4 is sufficiently concentrated, in combination
> with applied pressure, to preclude ice formation entirely
> during cooling to below the glass transition temperature
> (about -125 degrees C), at which point vitrification takes
> place, arresting further changes over time.
> METHODS: Rabbit kidneys were perfused with VS4
> according to three different protocols. The kidneys were
> evaluated using an autograft model with immediate
> contralateral nephrectomy.
> RESULTS: All three methods permitted long-term
> survival, but the best results were obtained when the
> highest concentrations were perfused at about -3
> degrees C. Using the latter protocol, the survival rate
> was 10/10, serum creatinine returned to a normal
> baseline after transient elevation, other clinical chemistry
> results normalized, and no histological damage was
> apparent 3 weeks after autografting.
> CONCLUSIONS: The results described provide the
> strongest evidence to date that it may be possible to
> bank kidneys for unlimited periods in the absence of
> ice for later transplantation.
>
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