CRYOPRESERVATION OF THE COMMON CAROTID-ARTERY OF THE RABBIT

We describe experiments on the cryopreservation of the rabbit common c arotid artery aimed at improving upon previous results. We describe th e design of a double clamp which holds the artery during transportatio n and storage, preventing twisting, shortening, and collapse of the ve ssel. The device allowed perfusion with solutions as desired and marke dly reduced the extent of endothelial loss during procurement and proc essing. We also studied the effects of three vehicle solutions; a modi fied Hanks' solution, a solution originally developed for the cryopres ervation of smooth muscle (K-Pipes), and a solution designed for corne al endothelium (CP-Tes). The criteria used to make the assessments wer e smooth muscle contractility and the structure and function of the va scular endothelium. A new staining method for vascular endothelium (co mbining propidium iodide with silver nitrate) is described. We found t hat there was significantly more endothelial cell damage in rabbit car otid arteries frozen in Hanks' solution than in the other solutions, a nd the recovery of smooth muscle contractility was lowest in the Hanks ' group. Arteries cryopreserved using CP-Tes as the vehicle solution s howed less endothelial cell damage than arteries preserved with either K-Pipes or Hanks' solution, and these arteries also exhibited the gre atest relaxation response to acetylcholine. We conclude that careful h andling of the vessels is important; of the solutions studied, CP-Tes is preferred for the cryopreservation of rabbit carotid artery with Me (2)SO. (C) 1994 Academic Press, Inc.