• Journal of Chest Surgery
• /
• v.27 no.1
• /
• pp.1-8
• /
• 1994

Allograft cardiac valves have been used for over 30 years to replace diseased cardiac valves, reconstruct right or left ventricular outflow tract. With increasing its requirement, the establishment of a viable bank capable of maintaining the viability of graft over a prolonged period would be desirable. The method for determining the viability of allograft by metabolic assay technique using radiolabeled aminoacids has been used recently. An experimental study was done for evaluation of viability of cardiac allograft which was preserved for 14 days at 4oC in nutrient medium[fresh preservation] by metabolism assay technique using 3H-glycine. Also, the effectiveness of low concentration antibiotic solution[CLPV] for sterilization was evaluated. The effectiveness of CLPV solution for sterilization of allograft was perfect. Pre-treatment cultured organisms were not cultured after treatment at all in every cases. The viability of allograft after sterilization was reduced to 66.4%[aortic wall], 74.7%[pulmonary wall], 76.3%[aortic valve], 67.9%[aortic wall]. And after the fresh preservation for 14 days, the viability was reduced to 14.7%, 18.5%, 17.7%, 19.0%, respectively.In conclusion, viability of allograft was reduce to 71.3[66.4-76.3]% after sterilization and 17.5[14.7-19.0]% after fresh preservation. And sterilization effect of CLPV solution was satisfactory.

• Journal of Chest Surgery
• /
• v.21 no.2
• /
• pp.231-239
• /
• 1988

Currently numerous methods are in use for myocardial hypothermia as a myocardial preservation modality for cardiac operation. During cardiac ischemia after crystalloid cardioplegia[4C GIK solution], topical cold saline[Group I, a=9], topical ice slush[Group II, n=9] and topical ice chip[Group III, a=10] have been compared for myocardial surface cooling in the isolated rat heart model of cardiopulmonary bypass. During postischemic period, hemodynamic functions[aortic flow, coronary flow, peak aortic pressure and heart rate], biochemical enzymatic activities and cellular injuries with electron microscope were evaluated in this isolated rat heart perfusion model. Postischemic aortic flow, cardiac output and peak aortic pressure in Group I and Group II recovered better than Group III.[p< 0.05] Postischemic creatine kinase and lactate dehydrogenase leakages in Group II and Group III increased more than Group l and postischemic mitochondrial swelling in Group III was more severe than Group I, and Group II.[p< 0.05] These results suggest that topical cold saline was the better method than topical ice slush or topical ice chip as a myocardial preservation modality in the isolated rat heart model of cardiopulmonary bypass.

• Journal of Chest Surgery
• /
• v.28 no.8
• /
• pp.731-741
• /
• 1995

Cardiac valve allografts have been used as replacements for diseased valves and right ventricular outflow tract reconstruction, the long term follow-up of which has been reported satisfactory. For a good long-term result, it is essential that the allograft be viable at implantation. In this study, we aimed at preparing the cardiac valve allografts aseptically, preserving them at cold- and cryo-conditions, and testing the viability of the allografts after preservation by four methods. We tested the viability of the cardiac valve allografts preserved in cold refrigerated state[4$^{\circ}$C in nutrient media & in liquid nitrogen tank[cryopreservation under -149$^{\circ}$C for pre-planned time periods. The testing methods were 1 glucose utility test 2 tissue culture 3 thymidine uptake test and 4 histologic evidence by light microscopy. We observed no differences in the viability between cold- & cryo-groups and similar results among the methods for testing the viability. In conclusion, there was no difference in the viability between cold- and cryopreserved-allografts at least for 14 days of preservation. And glucose utility test and thymidine uptake test were satisfactory in the evaluation of the allograft viability, since they were easy and rapid with relatively quantitative results.

• Journal of Chest Surgery
• /
• v.45 no.4
• /
• pp.213-224
• /
• 2012

Tetralogy of Fallot (TOF) is an index lesion for all paediatric and congenital heart surgeons. In designing an appropriate operation for children with TOF, the predicted postoperative physiology must be taken into account, both for the short and long term. A favourable balance between pulmonary stenosis (PS) and pulmonary insufficiency (PI) may be critical for preservation of biventricular function. A unified repair strategy to limit both residual PS and PI is presented, along with supportive experimental evidence. A strategy for dealing with coronary anomalies and some comments regarding best timing of operation are also included.

• Journal of Chest Surgery
• /
• v.29 no.10
• /
• pp.1066-1075
• /
• 1996

To compare the efficacy of cardiac preservation, we examined purine metabolites during 24 hours of cold storage($0^{\circ}C$) of the Korean ongrel dog hearts after using three different types of cardioplegic solutions. The hypothermic arrest with total cardiopulmonAry bypass method was employed in 51. Thomas solution(575) and blood cardioplegic solution(BCPS) preservation cases. Specimens were analyzed for levels of adenine nucleotides and their precursors by high performance liquid chromatography. The ATP content in the UW(University of Wisconsin) solution group tends to be higher than that of the combined hypothermic arrest group(575 and BCPS groups) after 2,4,8, and 12 hours of preservation respectively, but there were no significant differences between 575 and BCPS groups. The ADP contents in the UWS and BCPS groups were higher than that of the 575 group at 4,8, 12, and 24 hours, but the difference was not statistically significant between UWS and BCPS groups. The AMP contents did not change significantly in the three groups. The adenosine, Inosine, and hypoxanthine concentrations increased progressively, but the lev l of xanthine was very low in the three groups.

• Journal of Ginseng Research
• /
• v.37 no.3
• /
• pp.273-282
• /
• 2013

The present study was designed to investigate the cardioprotective effects of Korean Red Ginseng extract (KRG) on isoproterenol (ISO)-induced cardiac injury in rats, particularly in regards to electrocardiographic changes, hemodynamics, cardiac function, serum cardiac enzymes, components of the myocardial antioxidant defense system, as well as inflammatory markers and histopathological changes in heart tissue. ISO (150 mg/kg, subcutaneous, two doses administered at 24-hour intervals) treatment induced significant decreases in P waves and QRS complexes (p<0.01), as well as a significant increase in ST segments. Moreover, ISO-treated rats exhibited decreases in left-ventricular systolic pressure, maximal rate of developed left ventricular pressure ($+dP/dt_{max}$) and minimal rate of developed left ventricular pressure ($-dP/dt_{max}$), in addition to significant increases in lactate dehydrogenase, aspartate transaminase, alanine transaminase and creatine kinase activity. Heart rate, however, was not significantly altered. And the activities of superoxide dismutase, catalase and glutathione peroxidase were decreased, whereas the activity of malondialdehyde was increased in the ISO-treated group. ISO-treated group also showed increased caspase-3 level, release of inflammatory markers and neutrophil infiltration in heart tissue. KRG pretreatment (250 and 500 mg/kg, respectively) significantly ameliorated almost all of the parameters of heart failure and myocardial injury induced by ISO. The protective effect of KRG on ISO-induced cardiac injury was further confirmed by histopathological study. In this regard, ISO treatment induced fewer morphological changes in rats pretreated with 250 or 500 mg/kg of KRG. Compared with the control group, all indexes in rats administered KRG (500 mg/kg) alone were unaltered (p>0.05). Our results suggest that KRG significantly protects against cardiac injury and ISO-induced cardiac infarction by bolstering antioxidant action in myocardial tissue.

• Journal of Ginseng Research
• /
• v.37 no.3
• /
• pp.283-292
• /
• 2013

Ginsenosides are divided into two groups based on the types of the panaxadiol group (e.g., ginsenoside-Rb1 and -Rc) and the panaxatriol group (e.g., ginsenoside-Rg1 and -Re). Among them, ginsenoside-Re (G-Re) is one of the compounds with the highest content in Panax ginseng and is responsible for pharmacological effects. However, it is not yet well reported if G-Re increases the hemodynamics functions on ischemia (30 min)/reperfusion (120 min) (I/R) induction. Therefore, in the present study, we investigated whether treatment of G-Re facilitated the recovery of hemodynamic parameters (heart rate, perfusion pressure, aortic flow, coronary flow, and cardiac output) and left ventricular developed pressure (${\pm}dp/dt_{max}$). This research is designed to study the effects of G-Re by studying electrocardiographic changes such as QRS interval, QT interval and R-R interval, and inflammatory marker such as tissue necrosis factor-${\alpha}$ (TNF-${\alpha}$) in heart tissue in I/R-induced heart. From the results, I/R induction gave a significant increase in QRS interval, QT interval and R-R interval, but showed decrease in all hemodynamic parameters. I/R induction resulted in increased TNF-${\alpha}$ level. Treatment of G-Re at 30 and $100{\mu}M$ doses before I/R induction significantly prevented the decrease in hemodynamic parameters, ameliorated the electrocardiographic abnormality, and inhibited TNF-${\alpha}$ level. In this study, G-Re at $100{\mu}M$ dose exerted more beneficial effects on cardiac function and preservation of myocardium in I/R injury than $30{\mu}M$. Collectively, these results indicate that G-Re has distinct cardioprotectective effects in I/R induced rat heart.

• Journal of Chest Surgery
• /
• v.12 no.4
• /
• pp.442-449
• /
• 1979

Although anoxic cardiac arrest produces a dry, quiet field, the ability of the myocardium to withstand the anoxic insult is uncertain. The current growth of interest in the use of various cardioplegic solutions ` has resulted in the development of a number of different solutions. In this study, 51 consecutive cases of elective open heart surgery with the aid of extracorporeal circulation were reviewed retrospectively to compare two methods of myocardial preservation. All of these open heart operations had been performed, using hemodilution principle under the moderate hypothermia at the Department of Thoracic and Cardiovascular Surgery, College of Medicine, Kyungpook National University from December, 1975 to July, 1979. In the 31 consecutive cases that form the anoxic arrest group, the operations were done with intermittent aortic cross-clamping and topical cardiac hypothermia. The heart was cooled topically by cold normal saline, which was converted to ice slush before application to the pericardial sac. Twenty of 51 consecutive cases were assigned to the cold cardioplegic method [the cardioplegic group], in which two kinds of cold cardioplegic solutions [Young solution and G IK solution] were infused into the aortic root proximal to the aortic cross clamp for myocardial preservation. Mean total aortic cross clamp times were 43 minutes in the anoxic arrest group and 67 minutes in the cardioplegic group. In the post-operative period, spontaneous regular heart beatings were recovered in 80 percent of the cardioplegic group as opposed to 25.7 percent of the anoxic arrest group. Ventricular fibrillation requiring DC shock was seen in 32.3 percent of the anoxic arrest group and 10 percent of the cardioplegic group. In the cardioplegic group, mean CPK-MB was one positive value on the first post-operative day, and mean LDH 1 was elevated to 51 0 units/ml on the 2nd post-operative day. These results indicate that protecting the myocardium with cold cardioplegia is superior to use of the anoxic cardiac arrest.

• Biomolecules & Therapeutics
• /
• v.28 no.5
• /
• pp.482-489
• /
• 2020

G protein-coupled receptor kinase 5 (GRK5) has been considered as a potential target for the treatment of heart failure as it has been reported to be an important regulator of pathological cardiac hypertrophy. To discover novel scaffolds that selectively inhibit GRK5, we have identified a novel small molecule inhibitor of GRK5, KR-39038 [7-((3-((4-((3-aminopropyl)amino)butyl)amino)propyl)amino)-2-(2-chlorophenyl)-6-fluoroquinazolin-4(3H)-one]. KR-39038 exhibited potent inhibitory activity (IC₅₀ value=0.02 µM) against GRK5 and significantly inhibited angiotensin II-induced cellular hypertrophy and HDAC5 phosphorylation in neonatal cardiomyocytes. In the pressure overload-induced cardiac hypertrophy mouse model, the daily oral administration of KR-39038 (30 mg/kg) for 14 days showed a 43% reduction in the left ventricular weight. Besides, KR-39038 treatment (10 and 30 mg/kg/day, p.o.) showed significant preservation of cardiac function and attenuation of myocardial remodeling in a rat model of chronic heart failure following coronary artery ligation. These results suggest that potent GRK5 inhibitor could effectively attenuate both cardiac hypertrophy and dysfunction in experimental heart failure, and KR-39038 may be useful as an effective GRK5 inhibitor for pharmaceutical applications.

• Journal of Chest Surgery
• /
• v.26 no.6
• /
• pp.427-440
• /
• 1993

The paucity of donor hearts for transplantation can be remedied by distant heart procurement. Prolonging donor heart preservation is essential for successful clinical cardiac transplantation. Thirty-two isolated rat hearts were perfused with Krebs-Henseleit buffer solution for 15 minutes, arrested and preserved at 4 oC for 4 hours, and then reperfused for 25 minutes. The following three groups were prepared and hemodynamic changes, creatine kinase-MB isoenzyme levels and ultrastructural changes of the myocardium were analysed before and after cardiac arrest. ; Group I : the heart was arrested with the cardioplegic solution [Plegisol, potassium : 16 mM, sodium : 120 mM] and then stored in a solution with ionic compositions of the extracellular fluid [Hartman, potassium : 4 mM, sodium : 130 mM] ; Group II : the heart was arrested with the cardioplegic solution and stored in a solution with ionic compositions of the intracellular fluid [Modified Euro-Collins, potassium : 108 mM, sodium : 10 mM] ; Group III : the heart was arrested with the cardioplegic solution containing adenosine 20 uM, and then stored in a solution with ionic compositions of the intracellular fluid [Modified University of Wisconsin solution, potassium : 119 mM, sodium: 23 mM]. Left ventricular developed pressure at 20 minutes of the reperfusion was significantly higher in group III [64.3 $\pm$ 3.12 mmHg, p<0.01] and group II [58.3 $\pm$ 1.55 mmHg, p<0.05] as compared with group I [51.4$\pm$ 2.78 mmHg]. The time to induce cardiac arrest after infusion of cardioplegic solution with adenosine 20 uM [5.3 $\pm$ 0.30 second, p<0.005] was significantly shorter than without adenosine [10.6$\pm$ 0.55 second]. Coronary flow at 20 minutes of the reperfusion was augmented significantly in group III [9.6$\pm$ 0.50 ml/min, p<0.05, p<0.05] as compared with group I [8.0 $\pm$ 0.41 ml/min] and group II [8.1$\pm$ 0.51 ml/min]. Percentage recovery of left ventricular developed pressure at 20 minutes of the reperfusion was significantly higher in group III [94.6$\pm$ 2.51 %, p<0.005] as compared with group II and in group II [83.1 $\pm$ 1.22 %, p<0.005] as compared with group I [69.9 $\pm$ 1.73 %], and also percentage recovery of coronary flow at 20 minutes of the reperfusion was significantly higher in group III [82.3 $\pm$ 3.86 %, p<0.05] as compared with group II [71.4 $\pm$ 3.46 %] but there was no significant difference between group I and group II. Measured level of creatine kinase-MB isoenzyme at 15 minutes of the reperfusion was significantly lower in group III [1.23 $\pm$ 0.16 ng/ml, p<0.025] and group II [1.42$\pm$ 0.10 ng/ml, p<0.05] as compared with group I [1.79 0.14 ng/ml]. In the semiquantitative evaluation of the ultrastructural changes of the myocardium, mitochondrial score was lower in group III [0.7 $\pm$ 0.21] than in group I [3.1$\pm$ 0.28] and group II [1.7 $\pm$ 0.19], and also the other structural score was lower in group III [2.7$\pm$ 0.99] than in group I [7.9 $\pm$ 0.89] and group II [5.0 $\pm$ 1.22]. In conclusion, the solution with ionic compositions of the intracellular fluid is appropriate for prolonged cardiac preservation, and it appears to be better preserving method for distant procurement when the donor heart is rapidly arrested with cardioplegic solution containing adenosine 20 uM, and then stored with Modified University of Wisconsin solution.