Background: Oxidative stress due to reactive oxygen species (ROS) is thought to play a considerable role in ischemia/reperfusion (I/R) injury that impairs cardiac function. The present study examined oxidative damage in I/R injury and investigated the correlation between oxidative stress and impaired cardiac function after I/R injury of the isolated rat heart. Methods: Hearts isolated from male Sprague-Dawley rats were mounted on a Langendorff apparatus. Hearts arrested using St. Thomas cardioplegic solution and then they were reperfused. The hearts were divided into three groups depending on the frequency (0-2) of I/R. After I/R, left ventricular developed pressure (LVDP), left ventricular end-diastolic pressure (LVEDP), positive maximum left ventricular developing pressure (max LV dP/dt) and coronary flow (CF) were measured. Creatine kinase (CK) was measured in the coronary effluent and 8-hydroxy-2'deoxyguanosine (8OHdG), a marker of oxidative DNA damage, was measured. Adenosine triphosphate (ATP) was measured from frozen myocardial tissue after experiment. Results: We immunohistochemically demonstrated and quantified levels of 8-OHdG after I/ R injury of the heart. The frequency of I/R injury and cardiac dysfunction significantly and negatively correlated. The ATP products were similar among the three groups. The incidence of ventricular arrhythmias was not by affected oxidative stress. Conclusion: The frequency of I/R injury had more of an effect on 8-OHdG products and on impaired cardiac function with less myocyte damage than ischemic duration within 30 minutes of ischemia.Keywords: oxidative stress, ischemia/reperfusion injury, 8-hydroxy-2'deoxyguanosine (8OHdG), cardiac dysfunction tion might cause negative effects and a worse prognosis, with myocardial dysfunction (stunning) and coronary noreflow phenomenon. 1) Reactive oxygen species (ROS), which can be produced from reperfusion of the ischemic myocardium 2) and Ca 2 + overload in myocytes, contribute to cardiac ischemia/reperfusion (I/R) injury.
3)Reactive oxygen species cause the oxidation of DNAs, membranous phospholipids and proteins, and these are implicated in the pathogenesis of I/R injury, degenerative disease, carcinogenesis and aging. In particular, ROS have the potential to injure cardiac myocytes, endothelial cells and initiate chemical reactions in myocardial I/R injury.