Computer controlled cryoprotectant perfusion apparatus

Claim 1

A computer controlled apparatus for perfusing a biological organ, comprising: a programmable computer; a plurality of arterial perfusate reservoirs, each having an input and an output; means coupled to said computer and to said reservoirs for selectively sampling the contents of said reservoirs under the control of said computer; means for varying the concentrations of chemical agents in the arterial perfusate; means for generating increasing or decreasing concentration-time profiles of the chemical agents in the arterial perfusate to elevate the concentration of the chemical agents in the perfusate to any desired level and to return the concentration of the chemical agents to or approximately to zero; an organ container for holding a biological organ; a recirculating fluid flow path connecting selected outputs and the inputs of the plurality of reservoirs; an organ flow path extending from the recirculating flow path, through an organ pump, to the organ container; said organ pump being located in said organ flow path and coupled to and controlled by said computer for withdrawing fluid from the recirculating flow path and delivering said fluid to one or more organs in said organ flow path, thereafter to one of said reservoirs, to the recirculating flow path or to said waste outlet, according to control instructions received from said computer; first sensor means for determining the concentrations of chemical agents in the fluid flow paths and for determining the uptake of these agents by the one or more organs in said organ flow path; second sensor means coupled to the computer and interposed in at least one of the recirculating and organ flow paths, for sensing at least one of the temperature, pH, and pressure of the fluid in the flow paths and to provide the sensed information to the computer; main pump means interposed in said recirculating flow path and optionally coupled to and controlled by said computer for circulating fluid from a selected reservoir through said recirculating fluid flow path and through said sensor means, as determined by control instructions received from said computer; means for selectively returning perfusate to a selected one of said reservoirs from the recirculating flow path or to a waste outlet as a function of information sensed by at least one of said first and second sensors; and a temperature-controlled cabinet for housing the reservoirs, flow paths and pumps to maintain organ and perfusate temperatures at desired levels.