An ex vivo method to evaluate vasoactivity induced by hemoglobin-based oxygen carriers in resistance vessels

TL;DR

This paper introduces a new ex vivo method to test how hemoglobin-based oxygen carriers affect blood vessel constriction, which could improve the development of blood substitutes.

Contribution

The study establishes a reliable ex vivo vasoactivity evaluation method using isolated vessels and the DMT120CP system for HBOC testing.

Findings

The DMT120CP system accurately simulates physiological conditions for evaluating vasoactivity.

PEGylated bovine hemoglobin showed consistent vasoconstriction effects across batches with less than 5% variation.

The method can help develop strategies to reduce vasoactivity in HBOCs for better clinical outcomes.

Abstract

Red blood cell substitutes offer a solution to the problem of blood shortage and side effects of blood transfusion. Hemoglobin-based oxygen carriers (HBOCs) are one of the promising substitutes for red blood cells. Vasoactivity, which refers to the side effect of HBOCs that causes vasoconstriction and subsequent hypertension, limits the clinical application of HBOCs. In this study, an ex vivo method for the evaluation of vasoactivity induced by HBOCs was established based on isolated rat mesenteric artery vessels and the DMT120CP system. The DMT120CP system, equipped with a flowmeter, permits the control of intravascular pressure, pressure gradient, and flow conditions with high accuracy, simulating the physiological conditions for isolated vessels. The concentration of noradrenaline was optimized to 1 × 10−6∼3 × 10−6 M. PEGylated bovine hemoglobin (PEG-bHb) was synthesized and perfused into the vessel for vasoactivity evaluation, with bHb as the positive control and PSS buffer solution as the negative control. PEG-bHb showed a hydration diameter of 15.5 ± 1.4 nm and a P50 value of 6.99 mmHg. PEG-bHb exhibited a colloid osmotic pressure of 64.1 mmHg and a viscosity of 1.73 cp at 40 mg/mL. The established vasoactivity evaluation method showed significant differences in samples (bHb or PEG-bHb) with different vasoactivity properties. The vasoconstriction percentage induced by PEG-bHb samples synthesized in different batches showed coefficients of variation less than 5%, indicating good applicability and repeatability. The established evaluation method can be applied to study the vasoactivity induction and elimination strategies, promoting the clinical application of HBOCs.

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