A New Ex-Vivo Working Heart Model without Ischemia-Reperfusion Damage

Background: Rhythm and conductance disturbances may lead to heart failure. For better understanding of these circumstances electrophysiological studies are often performed using conventional Langendorff circulations or in-vivo studies. Limitations of in-vivo models include the difficulty accessing the left atrium between the pulmonary veins. In the well-established technique of Langendorff perfusion damages to the myocardium may arise from inevitable ischemia-reperfusion injury. Ischemia-reperfusion injury affects the electrophysiological properties of the myocardium, thus presenting an obstacle in conventional Langendorff perfusion. Therefore, we developed an ex-vivo working pig heart model without ischemia-reperfusion injury circumventing these limitations.