Role of Ischemia/Reperfusion Injury in Organ Transplantation

Reperfusion of oxygenated blood into previously ischemic tissue is essential to prevent the progression of cellular injury due to the decreased nutritional blood flow, i.e., the decreased delivery of oxygen and metabolic substrates, as well as the removal of harmful metabolic byproducts. However, it has become obvious that reperfusion also initiates a complex series of pathologic events that contribute to, rather than prevent, further tissue damage. Moreover, a growing body of evidence indicates that ischemia/reperfusion injury is initiated by events that occur at the level of the microcirculation. In the first part of this overview, we will delineate the major components of the microcircul…