Influence of donor age, post‐mortem time and cold storage on metabolic profile of human cornea

Abstract

ABSTRACT.Purpose: Limited knowledge exists about the influence of donor age and death-to-preservation interval (DPI) on the metabolic properties of the cornea. The aim of this study is to investigate the relationship between both factors and metabolite content of the cornea. Methods: Corneas from 15 human donors (age: 41-78 years) were obtained within 16 hrs post-mortem and kept in cold storage for 8 days. The metabolic profiles of the samples were investigated using high-resolution, magic angle spinning 1 H nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy before and after 8 days of preservation. Results: Twenty-two metabolites were detected and assigned in the corneal spectra. The significant metabolic differences before and after hypothermic storage were revealed between younger and older donors. DPI-related significant differences revealed before preservation of the corneas were not displayed after 8 days of cold storage. Conclusions: Age of donor as well as post-mortem time influences the biochemical properties of the cornea. Cold storage decreases the metabolite differences between the tissues collected at different post-mortem time.

Analysis of the cornea donor data: an eye bank study

“…EBAA recommends cornea harvesting within 20 hours in those aged less than 50 years, and within 18 hours in those aged equal to or greater than 50 years of age [20]. As a general rule, it is recommended that corneal harvesting should be completed within 12 hours [28], although there is still no consensus regarding the upper limit of this time, and it may well be prolonged in some cases [29]. Kartal et al [21] showed that ECC was greatest in the ≤3 hours group, although the difference was statistically non-significant.…”

The influence of Australian eye banking practices on corneal graft survival

“…It has been recommended that corneas be retrieved within 12 hours of donor death, 1 but there is no consensus on the acceptable maximum interval, and this time limit is sometimes stretched. 2 In Australia, after retrieval and processing within a 24-hour period, corneas are currently preserved in an eye bank in one of three ways: in tissueculture medium at 4ºC, in organ culture at 30-37ºC, or occasionally as a whole enucleated globe in a moist pot at 4ºC. Storage time depends on the preservation method but corneas will generally be transplanted as soon as practicable, to limit the inevitable deterioration that occurs after death and during storage.…”

Cellular Stress after Transferring Human Cornea from in vivo to in vitro Milieu - a Metabolomic Approach

“…Carr-Purcell-Meiboom-Gill spectra analysis was performed using MestreNova v. 5.1.0 software (Mestrelab Research, Santiago de Compostela, Spain). Peak areas were measured using absolute integrals and were normalized by the wet weight of the measured samples (weight range of corneal samples; immediately frozen: 7.3-12.1 mg; stored for: 1 day: 7.1-12.2 mg, 2 days: 7.4-11.9 mg, 3 days: 7.3-12.0 mg) and assignment of the metabolites in the spectra were performed as described earlier [7][8][9].…”

“…In addition, the very well established storage media are also the subjects of the investigation of their impact on biochemical properties of the grafts [7][8][9]. Other studies aim at establishing a link between the storage duration or the storage technique and the transplantation outcome [10].…”