Aminodiphosphonate or AI preincubation inhibits calcification of aortic homografts in the rat subdermal model.

Calcification is frequently noted in valved and non-valved aortic homografts, predominantly in the aortic wall portion. This study was designed to assess the individual anticalcification effects of the trivalent cation, aluminum (AI ), and the compound aminopropanehydroxydiphosphonate (APDP) when used to pretreat aortic wall homograft tissue before subdermal implantation in the rat model. Thoracic aortas of male rats (CD, Sprague-Dawley, 350 to 400 g) were harvested distal to the aortic valve and incubated in the following solutions: 1) APDP (0.004 M), 2) APDP (0.004 M) + glutaraldehyde (GLUT) (0.02 M), 3) GLUT (0.02 M), 4) ALCL3 (0.01 M), 5) HCL (0.001 M), and 6) HEPES (0.05 M). The homograft tissue was then implanted subcutaneously for 21 days in weanling male rats (50 to 60 gm) of the same strain. Explant results showed that calcification (CALC) was markedly inhibited in the APDP and 0.01 M ALCL3 groups, compared to the control and GLUT pretreated groups. No diphosphonate or aluminum related side effects were seen.