No abstract

Protection of the heart by remote preconditioning using IOA is as powerful as classical preconditioning. Both protection methods share protein kinase C as a common element in their signal transduction pathways. Since hexamethonium could not block the protection from IOA and a reperfusion period has to be necessarily interspaced between the IOA and the infarct inducing ischemia of the heart, a neuronal signal transmission from the remote area to the heart can be excluded with certainty. A humoral factor must be responsible for the remote protection. Interestingly the production of the protecting factor is dependent on the duration of the ischemia of the lower limb. The protecting substance, which must be upstream of protein kinase C, remains to be identified.

Remote preconditioning using IOA protects the rat heart from infarction. Classical and remote PC share both the delta1-opioid-receptor and free radicals as common elements in their signal transduction pathways. MPG can block protection from IOA and from one, but not from three, classical preconditioning cycles. This indicates that the protection by remote preconditioning is comparable to classical PC with one I/R cycle.

No abstract

No abstract