Autologous transplantation of ischemically injured kidneys in pigs.

BACKGROUND: Expansion of the organ donor pool can be obtained through novel interventions attenuating ischemic acute kidney injury, which will enable the use of kidneys that suffered prolonged ischemia. In basic science, new therapeutic targets are identified that should be tested in a relevant large animal model before use in human kidney transplantation. MATERIALS AND METHODS: The current paper provides a detailed description of the technique of autologous transplantation of ischemically injured kidneys in pigs with special emphasis on perioperative care. Results. The animal model was validated by showing that renal function after transplantation was proportional to the duration of warm ischemia before organ recovery. The extent of renal dysfunction was reproducible following kidney transplantations with the same warm ischemia time. CONCLUSIONS: Our experience may reduce the learning curves of other research groups taking an interest in the model and improve preclinical testing of novel interventions that modulate renal ischemia and reperfusion injury in kidney transplantation.