Are slaughterhouse-obtained livers suitable for use in ex vivoperfusion research?

Objectives The success of the ex vivomachine perfusion of pig livers used for preclinical research depends on organ quality and availability. In this study, we investigated whether livers obtained from slaughterhouses are suitable and equivalent to livers obtained from laboratory pigs.Methods Livers were obtained from slaughterhouse pigs stunned by electrocution or CO2inhalation and from laboratory pigs. For the latter group, 45 minutes of warm ischemia was mimicked for a subgroup, ensuring a valid comparison with slaughterhouse-derived livers.Results Livers from CO2-stunned pigs showed lower indocyanine green clearance and bile production, higher blood lactate and potassium concentrations, and higher alanine aminotransferase activities than electrically stunned pigs. Furthermore, livers from electrically stunned pigs, and livers from laboratory pigs, subjected or not to warm ischemia, showed similar performance in terms of perfusion and metabolism.Conclusion For an ex vivoliver model generated using slaughterhouse pigs, electrical stunning is preferable to CO2stunning. Livers from electrically stunned slaughterhouse pigs performed similarly to laboratory pig livers. These findings support the use of livers from electrically stunned slaughterhouse pigs, which may therefore provide an alternative to livers obtained from laboratory pigs, consistent with the principle of the 3Rs.