Extending The Life Of Donor Organs; LXR015

Transplanted organs might feasibly be stored for longer periods of time if an experimental drug from LXR Biotechnology fulfils its early promise. The compound, LXR015, inhibits apoptosis or programmed cell death, and has been used in combination with refrigeration and standard preservation fluids.

When compared to organs maintained with standard methods, LXR015-treated donor kidneys had significantly improved function at 24 hours following removal in preclinical studies. Commenting on the findings, David Tomei, chief executive of LXR, said that "rather than having just a few hours to successfully transplant an organ, it may be possible to extend this critical period of time, even up to 24 hours."

Promising Results In Three Organ Systems The investigator, Sufan Chien of the University of Kentucky Medical Center, has also reported that donor livers treated in this way showed significantly increased function, in terms of portal flow, bile secretion, oxygen consumption and liver enzyme production, compared to organs treated with standard methods. Similarly, donor hearts showed improved coronary flow and myocardial oxygen consumption compared to controls.