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[A cytoprotective chloride channel in gastric parietal cells].

This review summarizes the regulatory mechanisms and physiological functions of the novel sub-pS Cl- channel (0.3 pS) that is present abundantly in the basolateral membrane of rabbit gastric parietal cells. The sub-pS Cl- channel is voltage-independent and inhibited by NPPB, a Cl- channel blocker. We found that this gastric Cl- channel is linked to three important physiological roles. First, the sub-pS Cl- channel has a housekeeping role through dominating the cell membrane potential. Although several types of cation channels are present, they do not significantly contribute to the membrane potential in the parietal cells. Second, the Cl- channel is activated by prostaglandin E2 via the EP3 receptor/Ca2-/nitric oxide (NO)/cGMP pathway. A vasodilator ecabapide also activates the channel by increasing the intracellular cGMP content. The NO/cGMP pathway-mediated opening of the sub-pS Cl- channel is essential for cytoprotection against ethanol-induced damage in the gastric parietal cells. The NO/cGMP-elicited cytoprotection is abolished by NPPB. To our knowledge, this Cl- channel is the first identified target for the cytoprotective NO/cGMP pathway. Third, the sub-pS Cl- channel is inhibited by the GTP-binding protein-mediated intracellular production of superoxide anion. Hydrogen peroxide and hydroxyl radicals have no effect on the channel activity. The intracellular superoxide anion acts as a messenger in the negative regulatory mechanism of the sub-pS Cl- channel. The similar sub-pS Cl- channel is also found in rat gastric parietal cells.

Animals↗

Amifostine: an update on its clinical status as a cytoprotectant in patients with cancer receiving chemotherapy or radiotherapy and its potential therapeutic application in myelodysplastic syndrome.

UNLABELLED: Amifostine (WR-2721) is a cytoprotective agent that protects a broad range of normal tissues from the toxic effects of chemotherapy and radiotherapy without attenuating tumour response. This selective protection is due to the greater conversion and uptake of the active metabolite, WR- 1065, in normal versus neoplastic tissues. In a pivotal phase III trial, 242 patients with advanced ovarian cancer were randomised to receive treatment with cisplatin 100 mg/m2 and cyclophosphamide 1000 mg/m2 every 3 weeks with or without pretreatment with intravenous amifostine 910 mg/m2. Over 6 cycles of therapy, amifostine significantly reduced haematological, renal and neurological toxicities: treatment delays, treatment discontinuation and days in hospital related to these adverse events were also significantly reduced in patients receiving amifostine versus patients receiving chemotherapy alone. In another randomised phase III trial in 303 patients with head and neck cancer undergoing irradiation therapy (total dose 50 to 70Gy), pretreatment with intravenous amifostine 200 mg/m2 significantly reduced the incidence of acute and late grade > or =2 xerostomia. However, mucositis was not significantly reduced in amifostine recipients compared with patients receiving radiotherapy alone, although this has been shown in smaller randomised trials. Amifostine (340 mg/m2) also provided significant protection against pneumonitis and oesophagitis in patients with lung cancer receiving thoracic irradiation in a preliminary report from a phase III trial (n = 144). Other studies have demonstrated protective effects of amifostine in other tumour types and other chemotherapy, radiation and radiochemotherapy regimens; however, evidence is still limited in these indications. No evidence of tumour protection by amifostine has been demonstrated in any clinical trials. Amifostine has also been shown to stimulate haematopoietic stem cells and has been investigated as a therapy for patients with myelodysplastic syndrome in number of small preliminary studies. At the recommended dose and schedule, amifostine is generally well tolerated. Adverse effects are usually reversible and manageable and those most frequently experienced include nausea and vomiting, transient hypotension and somnolence and sneezing. CONCLUSION: The results of phase III trials have confirmed the safety and efficacy of amifostine as a cytoprotectant to ameliorate cisplatin-induced cumulative renal toxicity, for which it is the only agent proven to be effective, and neutropenia in patients with advanced ovarian cancer, and to reduce xerostomia in patients with head and neck cancer receiving irradiation therapy. Depending on the outcome of numerous ongoing clinical trials, amifostine may eventually find broader clinical applications, both as a cytoprotectant and as a potential therapy in myelodysplastic syndrome.

Amifostine↗

Induction of cytoprotective genes through Nrf2/antioxidant response element pathway: a new therapeutic approach for the treatment of inflammatory diseases.

In the last decade, it has become recognized that reactive oxygen species (ROS) play important roles in the multiple biological processes involved in the pathophysiology of chronic inflammation such as cell proliferation, adhesion molecule expression, cytokine and chemoattractant production and matrix metalloproteinase generation. Intracellular redox homeostasis is maintained by balancing the production of ROS with their removal through cellular antioxidant defense systems. The antioxidant response element (ARE) is a cis-acting DNA regulatory element located in the regulatory regions of multiple genes including phase II detoxification enzymes as well as antioxidant proteins including glutathione-S-transferases, NAD(P)H:quinone oxidoreductase-1, gamma-glutamylcysteine synthase, ferritin, and heme oxygenase-1. Nrf2 is the primary transcription factor that binds to the ARE, and through heterodimerization with other leucine-zipper containing transcription factors, activates the expression of these genes. It is evident that activation of ARE-regulated genes contributes to the regulation of cellular antioxidant defense systems. More importantly, there is a growing body of evidence suggesting that modulation of these cytoprotective genes has profound effects on immune and inflammatory responses. Activation of cytoprotective Nrf2/ARE-regulated genes can suppress inflammatory responses, whereas decreased expression of these genes results in autoimmune disease and enhanced inflammatory responses to oxidant insults. Thus, coordinate induction of cytoprotective genes through Nrf2/ARE pathway may represent a novel therapeutic approach for the treatment of immune and inflammatory diseases.

Antioxidants↗

Cytoprotection and immunomodulation in cancer therapy.

Bioprospecting and natural products drug development for cancer treatment has become an important area. Most of the cancer chemotherapeutic agents are associated with toxicity towards normal cells and tissues. Optimal dosing of cancer chemotherapeutic agents is often limited because of severe non-myelosuppressive and myelosuppressive toxicities. It is a continuing challenge to design therapy that is safer, effective and selective. Cytoprotective agents offer opportunities to reduce treatment related toxicity of anticancer therapy without diminution of efficacy. None of the available agents satisfy criteria for an ideal cytoprotection. This has stimulated research for discovering natural resources with immunomodulatory and cytoprotective activities. This article describes chemical agents presently employed in clinical practice and reviews ethnopharmacological agents reported to have chemoprotective, radioprotective, immunomodulating, adaptogenic and antitumour activities.

Animals↗

[Cytoprotective effect of antihypoxic and antioxidant preparations on cultured human cells in a model of toxic response].

An oxidative stress is considered to be one of the major mechanisms of cytotoxicity. The purpose of present work was to study effects of some drugs with antihypoxic/antioxidant activity in cultured human lung embryonic fibroblasts under conditions of cytotoxic response, provoked by cationic or anionic antiseptics. The following preparations were under study: Mafusol (Na-fumarate), superoxide dismutase from human erythrocytes (SOD), cytochrome c, alpha-tocopherol and Thioctacid T (lipoate) which were applied at concentrations comparable with those, employed in clinical application. The combinations of the used drugs were also under study. The cytotoxic response was induced by an application of antiseptics into the cell incubation medium in 2-5 fold dilutions up to minimum toxic doses for 2-24 h. The drugs under study were introduced simultaneously with antiseptics. The maximum cytoprotective effect was revealed in the case of combination fumarate-alpha-tocopherol; the combination fumarate plus SOD being the second in effectiveness. When the drugs were introduced separately, the most effective proved to be fumarate, followed by vitamin E and cytochrome c. SOD and lipoate did not reveal any cytoprotective activity in our experimental conditions. The designed model of cytotoxicity in vitro can be considered as a prospective test-system for the screening of cytoprotective drugs and their combinations.

Antioxidants↗

Role of cytoprotectants and nitric oxide inhibition in nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drug-induced gastroduodenal injury in the rat.

BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE: Nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) induce gastroduodenal injury and ulceration. The pathogenesis is uncertain, although reductions in cytoprotective prostaglandins and nitric oxide (NO) have been proposed. The effects of several cytoprotective agents on inhibition of gastroduodenal ulcerogenesis induced by CI-987, a novel NSAID, were evaluated in Wistar rats. METHODS: Male Wistar rats were given CI-987 orally (p.o.) at a dosage of 300 or 450 mg/kg of body weight or subcutaneously (s.c.) (3 x 50 mg/kg), alone or with misoprostol pretreatment (2 x 1 mg/kg, p.o.). In a second experiment, rats were pre-treated with 2 ml of gelusil p.o., 500 mg of sucralfate/kg, p.o., 100 mg of ranitidine/kg s.c., or 200 mg of N omega-nitro-L-arginine methyl ester (L-NAME)/kg, s.c.. Duodenal injury was induced by administration of 450 mg of CI-987/kg, p.o., 3 x 50 mg of CI-987/kg, s.c., or 300 mg of cysteamine/kg, s.c. Animals were euthanized within 24 to 48 hours, and the gastrointestinal tract was examined for evidence of gross or microscopic change. RESULTS: The L-NAME significantly reduced the incidence and severity of gastroduodenal injury induced by CI-987 and cysteamine. Prostaglandin ameliorated duodenal lesions induced by CI-987 given s.c., and Gelusil, ranitidine, and sucralfate were without effect on duodenal lesions induced by NSAID. CONCLUSIONS: Preemptive blockade of NO synthase is important in preventing NSAID-induced duodenal injury in rats. Inhibition of cytoprotective prostaglandins and enhanced acid-induced damage are unlikely to be primary mechanisms underlying NSAID-induced duodenal injury in rats.

Administration, Oral↗

Adaptive gastric cytoprotection is mediated by prostaglandin EP1 receptors: a study using rats and knockout mice.

Endogenous prostaglandins (PGs) play a central role in adaptive cytoprotection induced in the stomach by mild irritants. In the present study, we used taurocholate (TC) as a mild irritant in both rats and EP-receptor knockout mice, and examined which EP receptor is responsible for the adaptive gastric cytoprotection. Gastric lesions were induced by p.o. administration of HCl/ethanol (60% ethanol in 150 mM HCl). TC (5-20 mM) or PGE2 was administered p.o. 30 min before HCl/ethanol. HCl/ethanol-induced gastric lesions were dose dependently prevented by TC, and the effect at 20 mM was equivalent to that induced by PGE2 at 0.3 mg/kg. The protective effect of TC was significantly attenuated by indomethacin as well as ONO-AE-829, the EP1 antagonist, but not by either NS-398, the selective cyclooxygenase (COX)-2 inhibitor, or chemical ablation of capsaicin-sensitive sensory neurons. Likewise, the protective action of PGE2 was also antagonized by ONO-AE-829 but not chemical deafferentation. TC significantly increased PGE2 contents in the stomach, with or without chemical deafferentation, and this effect was blocked in the presence of indomethacin but not NS-398 or ONO-AE-829. TC increased the mucosal PGE2 contents similarly in both wild-type and knockout mice lacking EP1 or EP3 receptors, yet the protective action of TC against HCl/ethanol was observed in both wild-type and EP3 receptor knockout mice, but not in mice lacking EP1 receptors. The present findings confirmed a role for endogenous PGE2 produced by COX-1 in adaptive gastric cytoprotection and suggested that this action is mediated by activation of EP1-receptors but not associated with capsaicin-sensitive afferent neurons.

Adaptation, Physiological↗

[Various mechanisms of cytoprotective effect of omeprazole and low intensity laser radiation on the gastroduodenal mucosa in the treatment of patients with duodenal ulcer].

Clinical studies were made in 130 patients with duodenal ulcer in the phase of exacerbation of the disease. There were 98 men and 32 women who ranged from 17 to 50 years old. Results of examination of 7 essentially healthy subjects were regarded as control. The patients were divided into three groups. Group I patients (n = 48) received a conventional therapy; in group II patients, the adopted therapy was supplemented by omeprazol, 20 mg twice daily, group III patients (n = 43) were (in addition to the above therapeutic regimen) exposed to a session of endoscopic low-intensity laser irradiation (LILI) for 5 min (overall 6 to 8 LILI procedures). It has been ascertained that omeprazol exerts a cytoprotective effect on the mucozal barrier of the gastroduodenal zone brought about by increase in the synthesis of glucoproteins in the mucous membrane, improvement of the water-and-elastic properties, and enhancement of resistance of the mucosal barrier to the action of the aggressive factors. Administration of endoscopic LILI treatments in DU patients has also been found out to have a cytoprotective effect but superior to omeprazol. A protective action of LILI is believed to be caused by stimulation of synthesis of the most important components of glycoproteins. A cytoprotective effect of omeprazol and endoscopic LILI is ccompanied by a significant shortening of time for the clinical symptoms to get dispelled, the ulcer cicatrization frequency increased.

Adolescent↗

[Direct cytotoxic and cytoprotective effects of some drugs on isolated cells of gastric mucosa from rats].

Toxic effect of ethanol and indomethacin, and the cytoprotective effect of prostacyclin were studied. In absence of other aggressive factors, the indomethacin was found to be non-toxic, but it could enhance the necrotizing effect of ethanol, this effect could be counteracted by prostacyclin preincubation. These observations suggest that there is an endogenous prostaglandin system in rat gastric mucosal cells that may protect against the toxic effect of indomethacin; administered prostacyclin may have a cytoprotective effect when this endogenous prostaglandin system's protective function does not more function. Gastric mucosal cytoprotection may include cellular level processes, which are able to operate without the existence of tissue integrity.

Animals↗

Endothelial cell cytoprotection induced in vitro by allo- or xenoreactive antibodies is mediated by signaling through adenosine A2 receptors.

Endothelial cell (EC) expression of proteins such as hemoxygenase-1 or Bcl-xL is associated with enhanced survival of vascularized allo- or xenografts. These grafts are resistant to humoral rejection, a phenomenon called accommodation. In vitro, low concentrations of allo- and xenoreactive antibody (XNA) induce a cytoprotective phenotype in EC similar to that seen in accommodated grafts. In this study we examine whether adenosine plays a role in antibody-induced cytoprotection. Porcine EC were incubated with human anti-pig XNA or specific alloantibody. EC expressed Bcl-xL and were protected from TNF-mediated apoptosis. Bcl-xL expression was inhibited by an adenosine A2 receptor antagonist. Human anti-pig XNA were shown to bind and induce cyclic adenosine 3',5'-monophosphate (cAMP) generation through these receptors. This activity was abolished by depletion of anti-galalpha(1-3)gal-specific XNA. In contrast, alloantibody caused adenosine production. Protection from TNF-mediated apoptosis was also mediated through A2 receptor but involved additional non-cAMP-dependent signaling. This study indicates a molecular mechanism common to both antibody-mediated cytoprotection and ischemic preconditioning and suggests a potential therapeutic avenue based on adenosine for improving the outcome of transplanted grafts in those patients with pre-existing anti-graft antibody.

Adenosine↗

Differential antigenotoxic and cytoprotective effect of amifostine in idarubicin-treated mice.

In this study we evaluated the antigenotoxic and cytoprotective capabilities of WR-2721 [S-2-(3-aminopropylamino)-ethylphosphorothioic acid (amifostine)] in different normal tissues of BALB/c mice treated with idarubicin [4-demethoxydaunorubicin (IDA)]. The aminothiol WR-2721 is a pro-drug that requires dephosphorylation to its active metabolite WR-1065, to produce selectively cytoprotective activity in normal tissues exposed to radio- and chemotherapeutic agents, without protecting malignant tissues. IDA is an effective chemotherapeutic agent against hematological diseases, but produces a broad spectrum of toxicity in nontumoral cells. Animals were injected intravenously with WR-2721 (250 mg/kg) or IDA (6 mg/kg) and WR-2721/IDA. Micronuclei frequency in bone marrow was measured 24 and 48 hr after initiation of the treatments. The IDA-treated group showed increased levels of micronuclei. However, the WR-2721- and WR-2721/IDA-treated groups did not show differences from the controls. Genetic damage was evaluated by alkaline single-cell gel electrophoresis at 24-hr posttreatments. Important DNA damage was observed in liver, spleen, and peripheral blood cells of mice treated with IDA. The presence of WR-2721 diminished that damaging effect only in liver cells. The apoptotic index was measured in liver and spleen tissues by the TUNEL assay 14 and 24 hr after treatment. In liver we observed an increased percentage of apoptotic cells at 24 hr for the IDA-treated group, whereas the WR-2721 and WR-2721/IDA groups remained at low levels. Splenic cells treated with IDA and WR-2721/IDA showed increased DNA fragmentation levels at any time. In conclusion, WR-2721 has a tissue-specific antigenotoxic and cytoprotective effect in IDA-treated mice using these experimental conditions.

Amifostine↗

Cytoprotection by bcl-2 gene transfer against ischemic liver injuries together with repressed lipid peroxidation and increased ascorbic acid in livers and serum.

The maximum gene exhibition was shown to be achieved at 48 h after transfection with human bcl-2 (hbcl-2) genes built in an SV40 early promoter-based plasmid vector and HVJ-liposome for cultured rat hepatocytes. The similar procedure of hbcl-2 transfection was therefore conducted for livers in rats via the portal vein, and after 48 h followed by post-ischemic reperfusion (I/R) operation for some hepatic lobes. The I/R-induced hepatic injuries were in situ observed as both cell morphological degeneration and cellular DNA strand cleavages around capillary vessels of the ischemic liver lobes as detected by HE stain and TUNEL assay, and were biochemically observed as release of two hepatic marker enzymes AST and ALT into serum. All the I/R-induced injuries examined were appreciably repressed for rats transfected with hbcl-2; hbcl-2 was expressed in hepatocytes around the capillaries of ischemic regions such as the median lobe and the left lobe, but scarcely around those of non-ischemic regions. Thus cytoprotection against I/R-induced injuries may be attributed to the I/R-promoted expression of transferred hbcl-2 genes. The possibility was examined firstly by methylphenylindole method, which showed that I/R-enhanced lipid peroxidation in the reference vector-transfected livers were markedly repressed in the hbcl-2-transfected livers. Contents of ascorbic acid (Asc) in serum and livers of hbcl-2-transfected rats were enriched, unexpectedly, versus those of non-transfected rats, and were as abundant as 1.90-fold and 1.95- to 2.60-fold versus those in the pre-ischemic state, respectively. After I/R, an immediate decline in serum Asc occurred in hbcl-2-transfectants, and was followed by prompt restoration up to the pre-ischemic Asc levels in contrast to the unaltered lower Asc levels in non-transfectants except a transient delayed increase. Hepatic Asc contents were also diminished appreciably at the initial stage after I/R in the ischemic lobes of hbcl-2-transfectants, which however retained more abundant Asc versus non-transfectants especially at the initial I/R stage when scavenging of the oxidative stress should be most necessary for cytoprotection. The results showed a close correlation between cytoprotection by exogenously transferred hbcl-2 and repressive effects on the lipid peroxidation associated with Asc consumption or redistribution.

Animals↗

Cytoprotection of vascular endotheliocytes by phosphorylated ascorbate through suppression of oxidative stress that is generated immediately after post-anoxic reoxygenation or with alkylhydroperoxides.

Vascular endotheliocytes BAE-2 underwent the gradually proceeding cell death until 48 h after reoxygenation (Reox) following 3 h anoxia (Anox), but protected by pre-Anox administration with L-ascorbic acid (Asc)-2-O-phosphate (Asc2P), an autooxidation-resistant Asc derivative, but not by Asc itself. This cytoprotection with Asc2P was achieved in a glucose (Glc)-lacking buffer more advantageously than in a Glc-containing buffer where less efficiency had been demonstrated for Asc entry into BAE-2 cells than in a Glc-lacking buffer. Superoxide anion radicals were detected explosively in the extracellular space at 2-5 min after Reox following the Anox treatment of HUVE endotheliocytes, and were thereafter retained at levels as high as approximately one-half of the maximum level until 60 min after Reox, as shown by cytochrome c reduction assay. Superoxide anions at 3 and 60 min after Reox were suppressed by pre-Anox administration with Asc2P, but not with Asc or dehydro-Asc, and were not suppressed by post-Anox administration with Asc2P; the cytoprotection may need the intracellular accumulation of the ROS-scavenging effector Asc that is converted from Asc2P until 3 min after Reox. The ROS-generator tert-butylhydroperoxide (t-BuOOH) also induced both the diminished cell viability and nuclear DNA strand cleavages of BAE-2 endotheliocytes, which were also protected dose-dependently with Asc2P. The cytoprotection was attributed to reduction of intracellular ROS including hydroperoxide and hydrogen peroxide with Asc2P as shown by fluorometry with the redox indicator CDCFH-DA. Thus Anox/Reox-induced cell death can be prevented by Asc2P that suppresses ROS-generation immediately after Reox following Anox more efficiently in the intracellular sphere rather than in the extracellular space.

Animals↗

Cultured AIDS-related Kaposi's sarcoma cells retain a proliferative bioenergetic profile but demonstrate reduced cytoprotective capabilities.

Features of AIDS-related Kaposi's sarcoma (AIDS-KS), such as the multifocal presentation at mucosal and epidermal sites subjected to trauma, suggest that AIDS-KS is initially a reactive hyperplasia that subsequently progresses to a neoplasia. It is recognized that there is an association between sustained inflammatory states and the subsequent development of neoplasia (e.g., ulcerative colitis/colonic adenocarcinoma). Furthermore, patients who develop AIDS-KS experience both a constant immune stimulation due to sustained high levels of virus-induced cytokines and, because of a sparing effect on their phagocytic cells, retention of the phagocytic inflammatory response. A component of phagocytic activation is the initiation of the oxidative burst, resulting in the generation of reactive oxygen species (ROS), which can be mutagenic to host cells if released beyond the phagolysosome and not inactivated. Our results demonstrate that cultured AIDS-KS cells possess decreased cytoprotective capabilities. Relative to either dermal fibroblasts, or human microvascular endothelial cells (HMECs), AIDS-KS cells contained significantly lower levels of glutathione, a tripeptide integral in both cytoprotection and maintenance of cellular thiol status. While HMECs increased catalase activity during culture in the cytokine-rich KS milieu (control medium supplemented with conditioned medium from MOT, an HTLV II-infected cell line), AIDS-KS cells demonstrated reduced catalase function under these conditions. Furthermore, HMEC cultures showed an inherent biochemical responsiveness, by increasing catalase activity following exposure to exogenous H2O2. In contrast, the catalase activity of AIDS-KS cells decreased following H2O2 challenge. Our results show that an inherent deficiency in cellular cytoprotection is present in AIDS-KS cells and suggest that oxidant stress may function in the development and progression of AIDS-KS.

Acquired Immunodeficiency Syndrome↗

Recovery of function in cytoprotected cerebral cortex in rat stroke model assessed by functional MRI.

Functional recovery in cytoprotected somatosensory cortex in a rat stroke model was studied using functional MRI (fMRI). Calcium antagonist treatment (isradipine) following permanent middle cerebral artery occlusion (pMCAO) reduced the infarct volume by 33 +/- 9%. The somatosensory cortex representing the forepaws was spared from infarction; however, cerebral blood flow (CBF) was significantly reduced in this area 24 hr following pMCAO. Neural function was assessed at days 1, 2, 5, and 12 following pMCAO by fMRI using electrical stimulation of both forepaws. Vehicle-treated rats did not show fMRI responses in the infarcted somatosensory cortex throughout the study. Several of the isradipine-treated animals displayed functional recovery in the cytoprotected cortex at days 5 (3/5 rats) and 12 (5/10). Correlations with fMRI signals showed that normal T2 and ADC values in the respective brain areas are necessary, but not sufficient prerequisites for functionality. Recovery of neural function is associated with normalization of CBF in the cytoprotected brain area.

Animals↗

Gastric cytoprotective activity of dehydroleucodine in rats. Role of nitric oxide.

Previously we reported that dehydroleucodine (DhL), a sesquiterpene lactone, shows gastric and duodenal cytoprotective activity. The mechanism is not mediated by antiacid secretory action; DhL stimulated mucus production and indomethacin pretreatment reduced cytoprotective action. In the present study we demonstrated that the gastric cytoprotective effect is antagonized by the nitric oxide (NO) synthase inhibitor, NG-nitro-L-arginine. The inhibitory action of NG-nitro-L-arginine is reversed by L-arginine, but not D-arginine. The findings suggest that NO is involved in the gastroprotection induced by DhL.

Animals↗

Cytoprotective and antioxidant effects of boldine on tert-butyl hydroperoxide-induced damage to isolated hepatocytes.

Boldine, an aporphine alkaloid, was recently shown by us to exhibit potent antioxidant properties. We report here that boldine concentration-dependently inhibited the peroxidative (accumulation of thiobarbituric acid reactive substances) and lytic damage (trypan blue exclusion and lactate dehydrogenase leakage) to isolated rat hepatocytes induced by tert-butyl hydroperoxide (TBOOH). Boldine (200 micromol/L) fully cytoprotected and completely prevented the peroxidation induced by TBOOH at concentrations equal to or lower than 0.87 mmol/L. However, at a peroxide concentration of 0.91 mmol/L, although boldine completely inhibited lipid peroxidation it largely failed to afford cytoprotection against TBOOH. TBOOH alone (0.83 mmol/L) caused an early (within 60 s) sudden decline of reduced glutathione (by 50%) and an equivalent increase in the levels of oxidized glutathione. Neither of these effects was prevented by the simultaneous addition of a cytoprotective and antioxidant concentration of boldine (200 micromol/L). The delayed addition of boldine to the suspension (after 10 or 20 min), while effectively blocking any further increase in thiobarbituric acid reactive substances, totally failed to prevent the peroxide-induced loss in cell viability. Conversely, preincubation of the hepatocytes with boldine for 150 min (at which time no boldine could be detected in either intra- or extracellular spaces) prevented lipid peroxidation and was as effective in protecting the cells against the damage caused by the subsequent addition of TBOOH as the simultaneous addition of boldine and TBOOH to hepatocytes preincubated for 150 min under control conditions.

Animals↗

The cytoprotective effects of verapamil and iloprost (ZK 36374) on ischemia/reperfusion injury of kidneys.

We investigated the cytoprotective effects of verapamil, a Ca channel blocker, and of iloprost (ZK 36374), a stable prostacyclin analogue, on ischemia/reperfusion (I/R) injury in Wistar albino rat kidneys that were subjected to 60 min of warm ischemia and reperfusion. The groups included sham, ischemia-untreated (ISCH), verapamil-treated (VER), iloprost-treated (ILO), and verapamil + iloprost (VER + ILO)-treated rats. The 7-day survival of all the treated groups was better than that of the ISCH group. The creatinine concentration on the 3rd day was significantly lower in the VER + ILO group than in the ISCH group. Serum creatinine on day 3 was also low in the VER + ILO groups compared to the ISCH group, although the differences were not significant. The creatinine values on day 7 were significantly lower in the VER and ILO group than in the control, VER, or ILO groups. The malondialdehyde (MDA) concentrations of the kidney cortex tissue after reperfusion in all groups were higher than normal. The tissue-reduced glutathione (GSH) concentrations of the kidneys sampled immediately after reperfusion were significantly lower in the ISCH group than in all of the other treated groups. These results indicate that although verapamil and iloprost have independent cytoprotective effects on 60-min warm ischemia/reperfusion injury of rat kidneys, the protection afforded when both drugs are combined is synergistic. The mechanism of cytoprotection is not limited to the suppression of lipid peroxidation, and a nearly complete protection of reperfusion injury can be obtained by such an intervention.

Animals↗