Hydrogen Gas Protects Transplanted Lungs During Storage in Rats
- Authors
- Rongfang Liu, Xianhai Fang, Chao Meng, Jingchun Xing, Jinfeng Liu, Wanchao Yang, Wenzhi Li, Huacheng Zhou
- Journal
- Experimental Biology and Medicine
- Year
- 2015
- DOI
- 10.1177/1535370214563895
- Study Type
- Rat
- Outcome
- Positive
- Peer Reviewed
- Yes
- Country
- China
- Health Condition
- Lung Transplant Complications
- Body System
- Respiratory
TL;DR
Inflating donor lungs with a mixture of 3% hydrogen gas during preservation improved their function and reduced injury after being transplanted into rats.
Key Finding
In rats, inflating donor lungs with 3% hydrogen gas during cold storage before transplant reduced inflammatory markers and oxidative stress while improving oxygen levels and lung function compared to standard oxygen inflation.
Summary
Researchers tested whether inflating donor rat lungs with a mixture containing 3% hydrogen gas during the period before transplant surgery could reduce damage to the lungs. They compared lungs inflated with hydrogen to lungs inflated with standard oxygen and found that the hydrogen-treated lungs had less inflammation, less oxidative stress (cellular damage from unstable molecules), better oxygen levels in the blood, and less cell death after transplant.
Practical Takeaway
This is an early-stage rat study suggesting hydrogen gas may help preserve donor lungs during transplant procedures, but it does not yet demonstrate effects in humans. Much more research would be needed before this approach could be considered for clinical use in lung transplantation.
Abstract
Hydrogen has antioxidant and anti-inflammatory effects on lung ischemia–reperfusion injury when it is inhaled by donor or/and recipient. This study examined the effects of lung inflation with 3% hydrogen during the cold ischemia phase on lung graft function in rats. The donor lung was inflated with 3% hydrogen, 40% oxygen, and 57% nitrogen at 5 mL/kg, and the gas was replaced every 20 min during the cold ischemia phase for 2 h. In the control group, the donor lung was inflated with 40% oxygen and 60% nitrogen at 5 mL/kg. The recipient was euthanized 2 h after orthotropic lung transplantation. The hydrogen concentration in the donor lung during the cold ischemia phase was 1.99–3%. The oxygenation indices in the arterial blood and pulmonary vein blood were improved in the hydrogen group. The inflammation response indices, including lung W/D ratio, the myeloperoxidase activity in the grafts, and the levels of IL-8 and TNF-α in serum, were significantly lower in the hydrogen group (5.2 ± 0.8, 0.76 ± 0.32 U/g, 340 ± 84 pg/mL, and 405 ± 115 pg/mL, respectively) than those in the control group (6.5 ± 0.7, 1.1 ± 0.5 U/g, 443 ± 94 pg/mL, and 657 ± 96 pg/mL, respectively ( P < 0.05), and the oxidative stress indices, including the superoxide dismutase activity and the level of malonaldehyde in lung grafts were improved after hydrogen application. Furthermore, the lung injury score determined by histopathology, the cell apoptotic index, and the caspase-3 protein expression in lung grafts were decreased after hydrogen treatment, and the static pressure–volume curve of lung graft was improved by hydrogen inflation. In conclusion, lung inflation with 3% hydrogen during the cold ischemia phase alleviated lung graft injury and improved graft function.