Abstract:

BACKGROUND: At present, rat models of pancreatic transplantation are the major animal models for studying pathophysiology and transplantation immunology, but rat models of pancreas are characterized by difficult operation and low success rate. Rat pancreatic transplantation models using intestinal stoma method can simplify operation procedure and enhance success rate in model establishment.
OBJECTIVE: To improve the surgical techniques to establish a rat model of pancreaticoduodenal transplantation, which can be used for experimental research.
METHODS: Pancreaticoduodenal transplantation was performed between SD rats as donors and Wistar rats as recipents. End-to-side anastomosis was performed for arterial reconstruction between donors’ abdominal aorta and recipients’ abdominal aorta segments, while the donors’ portal vein segment was anastomosed with the recipients’ left renal vein by cuff technique. The proximal part of duodenum of the graft was ligated and a stoma was made on the distal end.
RESULTS AND CONCLUSION: Pancreaticoduodenal transplantation was performed in 40 rats. Out of 40 rats, 34 rats survived more than 3 days with normal blood glucose level. The success rate of transplantation was 84.4%.The average survival time of recipients was (8.97±2.05) days. The peak of death appeared on day 7-10 after transplantation, and the pathological changes of typical acute rejection were observed on day 7. The modified model is easily performed successfully, which provides a useful tool for experiment research on transplantation immunology.