Floor plan - 2013 Annual Meeting - American Association for Hand ...

ASRM SCIENTIFIC PAPER PRESENTATIONS: RESEARCH
Reduction of the Immunological Rejection in Composite Tissue Allotransplantation by Heat
Stress Preconditioning
Institution where the work was prepared: Hand-, Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery, BG Trauma Center,
Ludwigshafen, Germany
Nina Ofer, resident; Michael Sauerbier; Guenter Germann; BG Trauma Center
The outcome of composite tissue allotransplantations can be improved by reduction of ischemia reperfusion injury and graft rejection.
Heat shock proteins are produced as a reaction of the body during a stress situation. Once elevated they protect against a second stress
event. The purpose of the study was to examine the immunological rejection in a rat model of composite tissue allotransplantation and
to evaluate the effect of preconditioning by heat stress exposure prior to limb transplantation. Brown Norway rats were systemically
heated to a body temperature of 43°C in order to upregulate heat shock protein 70 (HSP70). The expression of HSP70 - measured by
western blot analysis - showed a peak after 24 hrs. Hindlimb transplantations were performed between Brown Norway rats and Lewis
rats. Group 1 (n=10) was exposed to heat stress 24 hrs prior to transplantation. In group 2 (n=10) the transplantation was performed
without heat shock pre-conditioning. Postoperatively, the transplanted hindlimb was evaluated clinically every twelve hours. The beginning
of the immunological rejection was defined when erythema, foot edema and hardening of the hindlimb could be observed at the
same time. At this time the rat was sacrificed and hindlimb muscle samples were taken for an histological assessment. The rejection in
group 1 occured after five days on average, whereas the graft rejection in group 2 was observed after four days. The difference was significant
(Whitney-Mann-U-Test: p