Magnetic field technology offers new hope for organ preservation, expanding donor pools

Currently, the three common organ preservation methods are static cold storage, machine perfusion, and cryopreservation. Although these methods can temporarily maintain organ viability, they cannot completely avoid "preservation injury" -such as metabolic and structural abnormalities of organs caused by low temperature, damage from ice crystals and protective agents, and reperfusion injury triggered when organs are re-supplied with blood. These issues have long been the key constraints on the effectiveness of organ transplantation.

The review focuses on evaluating the application of static magnetic fields (SMF) and alternating magnetic fields (AMF) in the preservation of cells, tissues, and organs. Preliminary results have been achieved in animal experiments: applying a 3 mT SMF during the preservation of rat livers significantly improved hepatocyte viability and antioxidant capacity, while AMF-assisted preservation enhanced myocardial energy reserves in porcine hearts.

In addition to organ preservation, magnetic field technology has also shown advantages in the cryopreservation of ovarian tissue and the freezing of various food products. The core mechanisms underlying its effectiveness mainly include three aspects: regulating the level of free radicals to reduce oxidative damage; stabilizing the structure of cellular and mitochondrial membranes to protect cell integrity; and inhibiting the formation of ice crystals to avoid mechanical damage. Notably, an advanced tech combines magnetic fields with MNPs for uniform, rapid organ rewarming during cryopreservation. Exposed to AMFs, MNPs generate heat via Neel/Brownian relaxation, minimizing damage and maintaining organ function, with positive results in vascular tissues, stem cells and rat organs.

However, the authors also pointed out that this technology still faces some challenges. For example, parameters such as magnetic field intensity, frequency, and exposure duration need systematic optimization, because the effect of magnetic fields on organ preservation is not a linear relationship, and the best effect can only be achieved within an appropriate parameter range; in addition, there is currently insufficient relevant clinical trial data, and more in-depth research is needed on issues such as the specific responses of different organs to magnetic fields and the biocompatibility of magnetic nanoparticles. Despite the challenges, magnetic field-assisted organ preservation technology is still regarded as a paradigm shift in the field of organ preservation. In the future, with the continuous improvement of the technology, it is expected to extend the effective preservation time of organs, and bring the hope of life to more patients in need of organ transplantation.

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Contact the author: Junhao Pan, High Magnetic Field Laboratory, Hefei Institutes of Physical Science, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Hefei, Pjh20207613@mail.ustc.edu.cn.

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