In 2010, over 16, 0000 names were queued for liver transplant in the US, but less than fifty percent of these cases were addressed. As the need for liver transplant escalates, researchers look to the potential of “marginal” livers to expand the dwindling supply for organ donation.

“Marginal” livers are those damaged by diseases such as bile build-up or cholestasis. Researchers have considered the use of these organs by treating the marginal liver with a substance that enables it to function normally after a transplant.

The use of damaged livers involves great risks, particularly that the liver will fail after it is attached to the recipient’s blood supply. However, with the use of a hedgehog-signaling inhibitor, researchers found evidence on the successful use of marginal livers in transplants.
In the recent report in Molecular Pharmaceutics published by the American Chemical Society, the substance called “cyclopamine” provides “hope for marginal livers.”

When applied to marginal livers, cyclopamine was found to inhibit any injury to the liver after its blood supply is severed and returned. This process of organ transplant performed in experimental rats also yielded positive indication that the chemical properties of the compound can improve the outcome of the procedure.

The medical benefits of cyclopamine have been known for some time. The Infinity Pharmaceuticals of Cambridge in Massachusetts have been extracting cyclopamine from the roots of the plant Veratrum californicum, or more commonly known as corn lily, skunk cabbage and cow cabbage. Researchers at Infinity believe that the compound may be used in developing treatment against certain diseases including brain, pancreatic and skin cancer.

While cyclopamine inhibits further damage on marginal livers, this obstructive property also proves to be useful in controlling tumor growth. Human tissues and organs development during the course called the hedgehog pathway. Cyclopamine has been found to affect this process by inhibiting cell reproduction. Applied to cancerous cells, cyclopamine blocks the hedgehog pathway, thereby inhibiting cancer cells from increasing. Indeed, this chemical holds promising answers to pressing medical questions.

-Toni Bacala