[Deuterium oxide (D2O)--a protective factor for cellular stabilization in hypothermic preservation of the liver? (author's transl)].

Rat livers were preserved by ischemic hypothermic storage in extra- or intracellular type solutions for 24 h. A substitution of 85% of the tissue water by deuterium oxide (D2O) resulted in increased glycolytic energy production, better maintenance of the energy potential of the cells but a higher AMP loss, and a reduction of edema formation. Preservation using "retrograde oxygen persufflation" (ROP) resulted in optimal maintenance of the metabolic state which could be further influenced positively by D2O in the total nucleotide content.