The authors' clinical experience with the BAL has yielded encouraging results. A randomized, controlled, prospective trial (phase II-III) is being initiated to determine the efficacy of the system.

Porcine endogenous retrovirus (PERV) genomes are present in all pig cells. In this retrospective study, we assessed PERV infectivity in 28 patients treated with an extracorporeal bioartificial liver (HepatAssist system) that includes a membrane device containing porcine hepatocytes. All patients tested negative for PERV using polymerase chain reaction analysis of peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMC) collected up to 5 years after treatment. In vitro results showed that the membrane decreased the risk of PERV transmission by a factor of 105, and porcine hepatocytes did not produce infectious PERV in co-cultures with human cell line 293. Our results do not support the presence of PERV infection in patients treated with this porcine hepatocyte-based bioartificial liver.

The efficacy of clinical islet transplantation has been demonstrated with autografts, and although islet allografts have established insulin independence in a small number of IDDM patients, the treatment is confounded by the necessity of immunosuppression. the lack of donor tissue, and recurring islet immunogenicity. These limitations underscore a need to develop therapies to serve the large population of diabetic patients. Porcine islet xenotransplantation, together with a successful immune intervention strategy, may provide the necessary clinical alternative. However, a major obstacle in evaluating this approach has been the difficulty of obtaining adequate volumes of functional islet tissue from pigs. Donors of market weight are preferable to retired breeders due to their abundance, lower animal and husbandry costs. and are more suitable to meet regulatory guidelines for donor tissue for xenotransplantation. We describe a simple isolation procedure that following purification yields a mean of 350,000 IE, corresponding to 179 units of insulin and 1.8 mg of DNA with an islet purity and viability in excess of 85% (n = 317 isolations). In both short- and long-term cell cultures, porcine islets demonstrated glucose-responsive insulin secretion. However, this secretion is density dependent, which may have significant consequences in the development of immunoisolation technologies to support porcine islet xenotransplantation. Following implantation into diabetic nude mice, porcine islets remained functional in excess of 1 year. Implantation of a bioartificial pancreas containing porcine islets into pancreatectomized dogs provided significant clinical benefit with an improved diabetic condition. Finally, secretagogue-induced insulin release was demonstrated in vitro from these devices after removal from immunocompetent recipients. Immunohistochemical staining identified well-granulated islets following long-term implantation in both the rodent and canine models. This study demonstrates the ability to isolate porcine islets in clinically relevant numbers from market animals, which survive and remain functional for prolonged periods of time in an immune-deficient or immunoprotected environment.

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Objective: The high pill burden of many phosphate binders (PBs) may contribute to increased prevalence of hyperphosphatemia and poor nutritional status observed among patients undergoing maintenance hemodialysis therapy. We examined the real-world effectiveness of sucroferric oxyhydroxide (SO), a PB with low pill burden, in managing serum phosphorus in patients with prevalent hemodialysis over a 1-year period.Design: Historical cohort analyses of de-identified electronic medical records. Subjects: In-center hemodialysis patients switched from another PB to SO therapy as part of routine care with 12 months of uninterrupted SO prescriptions recorded, and documented serum phosphorus levels were eligible for inclusion. Clinical data were extracted from a pharmacy service, FreseniusRx, database and Fresenius Kidney Care clinical data warehouse.Main outcome measures: Comparisons were made between the 91-day period before SO initiation (i.e., baseline) and the 4 consecutive 91-day intervals of SO treatment (Q1-Q4). Clinical measures included achievement of target phosphorus levels (#5.5 mg/dL) and mean number of PB pills/day.Results: Among 530 analyzed patients, the proportion achieving target serum phosphorus levels increased by .100% 1 year after switching to SO therapy, that is, from 17.7% at baseline to 24.5%, 30.5%, 36.4%, and 36.0% at Q1 through Q4, respectively (P , .0001 for all). Reductions in serum phosphorus were observed at all follow-up timepoints (P , .0001), irrespective of baseline PB. From a mean baseline PB pill burden of 8.5 pills/day, patients experienced an average 50% pill burden reduction during SO treatment (P , .0001). Phosphorus-attuned albumin and phosphorus-attuned protein intake (normalized protein catabolic rate) improved significantly after transition to SO (P , .0001). The effectiveness of SO was evident in prespecified subgroups of interest (i.e., black/African-American patients, Hispanic/Latino patients, and women).Conclusion: Among patients on hemodialysis, switching to SO resulted in a 2-fold greater likelihood of achieving target phosphorus levels while halving daily PB pill burden. Increases in phosphorus-attuned albumin and protein intake suggest improved nutritional status.