Using diffusion tension imaging for evaluating the effects of warm ischemia-reperfusion injury on liver regeneration in rabbits / 中华器官移植杂志

ABSTRACT

Objective:To explore the value of diffusion tension imaging (DTI) in the evaluations of hepatic ischemia-reperfusion injury (WIRI) regulation of liver regeneration after partial hepatectomy.Methods:Thirty healthy adult male New Zealand white rabbits were randomly divided into five groups of control and 10/20/30/40 min warm ischemia time (A0-A4)( n=6 each). Routine magnetic resonance (MR) and diffusion tensor imaging (DTI) were performed at 6 h, 3 d, 7 d, 14 d, 30 d post-keratectomy. The serum levels of alanine aminotransferase (ALT), aspartate aminotransferase (AST) and lactate dehydrogenase (LDH) were measured at Day 30 post-keratectomy. The levels of malondialdehyde (MDA), myeloperoxidase (MPO), superoxide dismutase (SOD), tumor necrosis factor-alpha (TNF-α), interleukin-6 (IL-6) and proliferating cell nuclear antigen (PCNA) in frozen liver tissues were examined and histopathological examination was performed. The values of apparent diffusion coefficient (ADC), fractional anisotropy (FA) and liver volume were measured and liver regeneration rate (LRR) was calculated. Repeated measurement analysis of variance was employed for comparing the difference of DTI and LRR in different groups at different follow-up times. One-way analysis of variance was utilized for comparing the differences of DTI and LRR between groups at the same follow-up time. Pearson or Spearman correlation analysis was employed for evaluating the correlation between DTI, LRR and biochemical parameters. Results:The interaction between time and warm ischemic factor ( P<0.05) and the effect of both alone ( P<0.001) had statistically significant effects on ADC values. FA value and LRR interaction were not significant between time and warm ischemic factor. However, the dominant effect of time factor was significant ( P<0.05). A significant positive correlation existed between ADC value and LRR in the same warm ischemia group ( P<0.01). FA and LRR were negatively correlated ( P<0.05), except for A3 group. FA had a weak correlation with IL-6 at Day 30 post-operation. Conclusions:DTI can non-invasively and quantitatively evaluate the effect of hepatic WIRI on liver regeneration after partial hepatectomy in rabbits. A certain degree of WIRI (≤30 min) can promote liver regeneration after partial hepatectomy. The longer warm ischemia time, the more obvious promotion effect. However, the promotion effect declines significantly after 30 min.