A spin-off application of this project is the use of an extracorporeal perfused liver for hepatic support in acute liver failure. Robert H. Bartlett, M.D., Sean Chambers, Scott, Merz, Ph.D., J. Patrick Montoya, Ph.D. National Institutes of Health Studies in our laboratory indicate that the mechanisms which cause hemolysis which are generally accepted in the bioengineering literature are not reproducible in our laboratory. Current experiments are designed to evaluate the mechanisms of pressure flow, shear stress and resistance which cause red cell lysis. The experiments are done in in-vitro test systems. The biochemical events leading to pulmonary fibrosis are studied in laboratory and clinical situations.
Primary emphasis is on the role of lysyl oxidase in the polymerization of collagen.