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Abstract: TH-OR063

Mass Spectrometry Imaging Rapidly Discriminates between Ischemic Injury in Renal Tissue

Session Information

Category: Pathology and Lab Medicine

  • 1501 Pathology and Lab Medicine: Basic

Authors

  • de Hoogt, Patrick Alexander, Maastricht University Medical Center, Maastricht, Netherlands
  • Van smaalen, Tim C., Maastricht University Medical Center, Maastricht, Netherlands
  • Snoeijs, Maarten G., Maastricht University Medical Center, Maastricht, Netherlands
  • Schurink, Geert willem H., Maastricht University Medical Center, Maastricht, Netherlands
  • Peutz-Kootstra, Carine, Maastricht University Medical Center, Maastricht, Netherlands
  • Cillero pastor, Berta, M4I, Maastricht, Netherlands
Background

The increasing analytical speed of mass spectrometry imaging (MSI), leads to growing interest in the medical field. When transplanting donor kidneys, ischemic injury to donor kidneys leads to significant short and long term risk for recipients. No reliable cut-offs are known to decide if a donor kidney can be safely transplanted. Thus, there is a need for new tools to rapidly and accurately assess acute ischemic injury in renal transplantation to aid in graft selection. We investigated the value of MSI to assess acute ischemic kidney tissue in a porcine model.

Methods

A perfusion model was developed where paired kidneys received warm (severe) or cold (minor) ischemia (n=8 per group). First, ischemic tissue damage was systematically assessed by two blinded pathologists. Secondly, MALDI-MSI of kidney tissues was performed to study spatial distributions and compositions of lipids in the tissues.

Results

Histopathological examination revealed no significant difference between kidneys, while MALDI-MSI was capable of a detailed discrimination of warm and cold ischemia by differential expression of characteristic lipid degradation products within 2 hours. In particular lysolipids, including lysocardiolipins, lysophosphatidylcholines and lysophosphatidylinositol, were dramatiaclly elevated after warm ischemia.

Conclusion

This study demonstrates the significant potential of MSI to differentiate and identify molecular patterns of early ischemic injury in a clinically acceptable time frame. The observed changes highlight the underlying biochemical processes of acute ischemic kidney injury and provide a molecular classification tool that can be deployed for graft viability assessment.