Drug metabolising activity of freshly isolated human hepatocytes.

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Abstract
Hepatocytes have been isolated from samples of adult human liver by removal of extracellular calcium followed by perfusion with collagenase. The hepatocytes were isolated with a yield of up to 39 × 10(6) cells/g and with a viability of up to 74%. The cells were active in the oxidation of aldrin and 7-ethoxycoumarin. They also catalysed the conjugation of 7-hydroxycoumarin. Monooxygenase activity of the hepatocytes was linear for at least 60 min. Maintenance of the hepatocytes in suspension at 4 degrees C for 19 h resulted in a 15% loss in viability. This was accompanied by a 50% decrease in monooxygenase activity expressed per viable cell. It is concluded that human hepatocytes can be isolated in sufficient yield and with satisfactory viability for use in a range of studies on drug metabolism and toxicity.