A NEW TECHNIQUE OF ONE-STAGE TOTAL HEPATECTOMY IN THE RAT

Background. A small animal model of one-stage total hepatectomy is nee ded for the study of the consequences of fulminant liver failure and t o investigate the extrahepatic metabolism of drugs metabolized by the liver. The models of hepatectomy described previously in the rat have the disadvantage of multiple stages, technical difficulty, or achievem ent of only an incomplete removal of the liver tissue. Methods. A Y-sh aped graft was prepared from the inferior vena cava and the left renal vein of a donor rat. A total hepatectomy was performed in a recipient rat. The graft was placed and the portorenal and lower cavocaval anas tomoses were performed by means of the polyethylene cuff technique. Th e upper cavocaval anastomosis was fashioned with a continuous suture. The procedure was performed on 49 rats, and the animals were studied f or survival and biochemical profiles. Results. The surgical procedure took a mean of 40 +/- 5 minutes and was not associated with any operat ive deaths. The portal clamping time did not exceed 15 minutes. Sponta neous mean survival of the anhepatic rats was 360 +/- 30 minutes, and glucose supplemented animals had a mean survival time of 20 +/- 5 hour s. The anhepatic state was associated with significant metabolic and b iochemical alterations. Conclusions. This procedure is quick to perfor m and does not require considerable microsurgical expertise. It provid es a reproducible small animal model of total hepatectomy that is part icularly useful for metabolic studies.