Coronary artery occlusion (45 min) and reperfusion (2 h) were modeled in vivo in anesthetized artificially ventilated Wistar rats. Total
ischemia (45 min) and reperfusion (30 min) of the isolated rat heart were performed in vitro. The selective agonist of
cannabinoid (CB) receptors
HU-210 was injected intravenously at a dose of 0.1 mg/kg 15 min prior to the coronary artery
ligation. The selective CB1 antagonist
SR141716A and the selective CB2 antagonist
SR144528 were injected intravenously 25 min prior to
ischemia. In vitro,
HU-210 and
SR141716A were added to the perfusion
solution at the final concentrations of 0.1 microM prior to total
ischemia. Preliminary injection of
HU-210 reduced the
infarct size-to-area at risk (IS/AAR) ratio in vivo. This cardioprotective effect was completely abolished by
SR141716A but remained after
SR144528 injection. Both antagonists had no effect on the IS/AAR ratio. Preliminary injection of the K(
ATP) channel blocker
glibenclamide did not abolish the cardioprotective effect of
HU-210. The addition of
HU-210 prior to
ischemia reduced the
creatine phosphokinase (CPK) level in the coronary effluent and decreased left ventricular developed pressure.
SR141716A alone had no effect on cardiac contractility and CPK levels. These results suggest that cardiac
CB1 receptor activation increases cardiac tolerance to
ischemia-reperfusion and has a negative effect on the cardiac pump function. Endogenous
cannabinoids are not involved in the regulation of cardiac contractility and tolerance to
ischemia and reperfusion.
ATP-sensitive E+ channels are not involved in the mechanism of the cardioprotective effect of
HU-210.