BACKGROUND: The demand for the clinical use of hepa- tocytes is increasing. The aim of this study was to develop a method for procurement of high qualitative pig hepatocytes and to evaluate the state of freshly isolated and cultured hepatocytes. METHODS: The domestic extracorporeal circulating perfu- sion apparatus was used to isolate and harvest swine hepato- cytes by the two-step perfusion method with EDTA and collagenase. The viability, function and morphology of the freshly isolated and cultured cells were evaluated and ob- served by the trypan blue exclusion test, biochemical mea- surements, phase contrast microscopy and transmission electron micrography (TEM). RESULTS: The total yield of isolated hepatocytes reached to 1.5(±0.4)×l010 per liver with a viability of 92(±5)%, and the purity of hepatocytes reached to 98% Immediately after isolation, phase-contrast microscope and TEM showed that undamaged hepatocytes appeared bright, translucent and spherical in shape, with a characteristic well-contrasted border. After 24 hours, the concentrations of alanine aminotransferase (ALT), aspartate aminotrans- ferase ( AST ), lactate dehydrogenase ( LDH ), albumin (ALB), creatinine (Cr) and blood urea nitrogen (BUN) in the fluid of culture were declined significantly. CONCLUSION: This method of procuring swine hepato- cytes could get high quality cells with active metabolic function.
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