ABSTRACT PURPOSE:

To evaluate the effect of remote ischemic preconditioning (IPC-R) in the fetal small bowel transplantation model.

METHODS:

Two groups were constituted: The Isogenic transplant (ISO, C57BL/6 mice, n=24) and the allogenic transplant (ALO, BALB/c mice, n=24). In each group, the animals were distributed with and without IPC-R.

It was obtained the following subgroups:

Tx, IPC-R, Fk, IPC-Fk, in both strains. Intestinal grafts were stained with hematoxylin and eosin and immunohistochemically.

RESULTS:

The graft development evaluation in ISO group showed that IPC-R reduced the development compared with ISO-Tx (5.2±0.4 vs 9.0±0.8) and IPC-R-Fk increased the graft development compared with IPC-R (11.2±0.7 and 10.2±0.8). In ALO group, IPC-Fk increased the development compared with ALO-Tx and ALO with IPC-R (6.0±0.8, 9.0±1.2, 0.0±0.0, 0.5±0.3). The PCNA expression was increased in ISO group treated with Fk and IPC-R compared to other groups (12.2±0.

8 vs Tx:

8.8±0.9, IPC-R: 8.0±0.

4 and Fk:

9.0±0.6). The graft rejection was lower in groups treated with IPC-R (-18%), Fk (-68%) or both (-61%) compared with ALO-Tx.

CONCLUSION:

Remote ischemic preconditioning showed benefic effect even associate with Tacrolimus on the development and acute rejection of the fetal small bowel graft in the Isogenic and Allogenic transplants.