City in transplant breakthrough

Health Reporter

January 13, 2007

SCIENTISTS in Edinburgh have created a new liquid which preserves organs and increases success rate of transplants.

The solution is being hailed as a major breakthrough because it prevents blood clots inside the organ, making it more likely that the transplant will not be rejected.

The discovery is also likely to improve the chances of a match being found for a patient, as it increases the length of time organs can be preserved, making it possible to transport organs long distances. Scientists from Edinburgh University have collaborated with surgeons from Edinburgh Royal Infirmary on the research project.

Professor Ian Megson, who carried out the research when he was a senior cardiovascular science lecturer at Edinburgh University, said: "Our experiments so far have been based on analysing the effect of the solution on cultured cells and in isolated blood vessels, but we now hope to investigate the impact in the organs themselves.

"The results so far are extremely promising. Not only do they offer a greater chance of transplantation success, but they also suggest that organs could be kept for longer prior to transplantation."

"This could facilitate transporting organs internationally for specific donors, improving the chances of a good tissue match."

Last year, 43 people in Scotland and 400 throughout the UK died before they were able to receive an organ transplant. More than 650 livers and 2300 kidneys are transplanted each year in the UK. Kidney transplants are the most commonly performed although transplants of the heart, liver and lungs are also regularly carried out.

The scientists in Edinburgh have been experimenting on a nitric oxide chemical solution and have discovered it can prevent blood clotting inside the organ.

The organ also is less likely to be rejected as cells are protected against harmful free radicals produced by oxygen in the recipient's blood after transplantation.

The scientists said preserving this layer of cells was vital to ensure enough blood flowed to the organ after transplantation.

The number of patients waiting for an organ has increased by nine per cent in the last year and at the end of March there were almost 6700 people on the transplant register in the UK.

The latest figures from UK Transplant, the organisation which oversees UK services, also showed that 764 organs were used in 2195 transplants between April 2005 and March last year.

James Garden, a professor of clinical surgery at Edinburgh University, was involved in the research and said the new solution represented a major breakthrough.

He said: "The results suggest current organ preservation solutions could be enhanced significantly. This may allow the use of some donated organs that currently might not be suitable for transplant because they are sub-optimal, or by providing more time to achieve a suitable match between donor and recipient."

The discovery was welcomed today by Collette Thain MBE, the founder the PBC Foundation, a city-based patient support charity which represents 10,000 people throughout the UK. She said: "This is fantastic news. This substance could mean there is less chance of rejection. Many people have to have a second transplant because their body has rejected the first organ or they are on a huge amount of medication which prevents rejection but can cause all sorts of other difficulties."

This article posted February 4, 2007.

City in transplant breakthrough

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