title: In vitro studies on a bioreactor module containing encapsulated goat hepatocytes for the development of bioartificial liver.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  A bioartificial liver may act as a temporary metabolic bridge in patients with acute liver failure. We devised a bioreactor module containing encapsulated goat hepatocytes and studied its efficiency in detoxifying ammonia.
  
  
  METHODS
  A hollow-glass bioreactor module was designed and fabricated locally. The module was inoculated with alginate poly-L-lysine microcapsules with entrapped goat hepatocytes. Metabolism of ammonia and glucose was assessed. Antibody-mediated cell cytotoxicity was also assessed.
  
  
  RESULTS
  The optimum encapsulated goat hepatocyte concentration was 12-18 billion at a perfusate flow rate of 30 mL/min under oxygenated condition. The optimum ammonium chloride concentration for detoxification was 2.5-5.0 mM. There was little or no cytolysis of encapsulated hepatocytes on exposure to complement-inactivated human AB serum.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Encapsulated goat hepatocytes efficiently detoxified ammonia to urea. Cells were metabolically active up to 48 hours, indicating their feasibility for use in a bioreactor module. Encapsulation protected the hepatocytes from antibody-mediated cell lysis.
authors: Center for Liver Diseases, Owaisi Hospital and Research Center, Deccan College of Medical Sciences, Kanchanbagh, Santoshnagar, Hyderabad. aleem_a_khan@rediffmail.com
authors: Aleem A
authors: AA
authors: Khan
authors: Adarsh K
authors: AK
authors: Capoor
authors: N
authors: N
authors: Parveen
authors: Shakeel
authors: S
authors: Naseem
authors: Vijayalakshmi
authors: V
authors: Venkatesan
authors: Chitoor M
authors: CM
authors: Habibullah
mesh_terms: D000641:Ammonia / Q000378:metabolism; D000818:Animals; D019149:Bioreactors; D006041:Goats; D022781:Hepatocytes; D006801:Humans; D019164:Liver, Artificial; D014508:Urea / Q000378:metabolism
chemical_list: D000641:Ammonia; D014508:Urea