Thallium kinetics in rat cardiac transplant rejection

Journal Article · Fri Apr 01 04:00:00 EST 1988 · Transplantation; (United States)

DOI:https://doi.org/10.1097/00007890-198804000-00004· OSTI ID:6938752

Barak, J H; LaRaia, P J; Boucher, C A; Fallon, J T; Buckley, M J

Cardiac transplant rejection is a very complex process involving both cellular and vascular injury. Recently, thallium imaging has been used to assess acute transplant rejection. It has been suggested that changes in thallium kinetics might be a sensitive indicator of transplant rejection. Accordingly, thallium kinetics were assessed in vivo in acute untreated rat heterotopic (cervical) transplant rejection. Male Lewis rats weighing 225-250 g received heterotopic heart transplants from syngeneic Lewis rats (group A; n = 13), or allogeneic Brown Norway rats (group B; n = 11). Rats were imaged serially on the 2nd and the 7th postoperative days. Serial cardiac thallium content was determined utilizing data collected every 150 sec for 2 hr. The data were fit to a monoexponential curve and the decay rate constant (/sec) derived. By day 7 all group B hearts had histological evidence of severe acute rejection, and demonstrated decreased global contraction. Group A hearts showed normal histology and contractility. However, thallium uptakes and washout of the two groups were the same. Peak thallium uptake of group B was +/- 3758 1166 counts compared with 3553 +/- 950 counts in the control group A (P = 0.6395); The 2-hr percentage of washout was 12.1 +/- 1.04 compared with 12.1 +/- 9.3 (P = 1.0000); and the decay constant was -0.00002065 +/- 0.00001799 compared with -0.00002202 +/- 0.00001508 (P = 0.8409). These data indicate that in vivo global thallium kinetics are preserved during mild-to-severe acute transplant rejection. These findings suggest that the complex cellular and extracellular processes of acute rejection limit the usefulness of thallium kinetics in the detection of acute transplant rejection.

• Research Organization: Massachusetts General Hospital, Boston (USA)
• OSTI ID: 6938752
• Journal Information: Transplantation; (United States), Journal Name: Transplantation; (United States) Vol. 45:4; ISSN TRPLA
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English

Related Subjects

550601* -- Medicine-- Unsealed Radionuclides in Diagnostics
560162 -- Radionuclide Effects
Kinetics
& Toxicology-- Animals
Plants
Microorganisms
& Cells
62 RADIOLOGY AND NUCLEAR MEDICINE
63 RADIATION, THERMAL, AND OTHER ENVIRON. POLLUTANT EFFECTS ON LIVING ORGS. AND BIOL. MAT.
ANIMALS
BODY
CARDIOVASCULAR SYSTEM
COUNTING TECHNIQUES
GRAFT-HOST REACTION
HEART
ISOTOPES
MAMMALS
MUSCLES
MYOCARDIUM
ORGANS
RADIOISOTOPE SCANNING
RADIONUCLIDE KINETICS
RATS
RODENTS
THALLIUM ISOTOPES
TRANSPLANTS
UPTAKE
VERTEBRATES