In the rat model of heterotopic auxiliary liver transplantation (HALTx), the opinion varies on whether and how the recipient's native liver should be handicapped. To avoid atrophy of the transplanted organ, in this study, two different handicaps were evaluated and their effects on post-operative animal survival and liver biology are described. With a sole portacaval shunt (group 1) all rats survived longer than 3 months. An additional handicap of the liver with either a 68% partial hepatectomy (68% PH) (group 2), or both a 68% PH and a common bile duct ligation (CBDL) (group 3) led to a 100% mortality within 2 days after surgery. When an auxiliary liver was transplanted to the rats handicapped with a 68% PH (group 4), serum Bilirubin and ALAT values were significantly lower than those handicapped with both a 68% PH and a CBDL (group 5). Autopsyand histology of the long-term survivors revealedthe atrophy of the engrafted livers and the regenerationof the native livers in group 4, whereas itshowed the opposite in group 5. Thus the variousmanipulations of the native liver do influencedifferently the post-transplant animal survival,serum liver biochemistry and the outcome of theengrafted liver in this rat model of HALTx.
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