Remote preconditioning provides myocardial protection against myocardial ischemia/reperfusion injury through downregulating the expression of calreticulin in rats

AIM: To evaluate the role of calreticulin (CRT) in myocardial protection of remote preconditioning against myocardial ischemia/reperfusion injury. METHODS: Thirty SD rats were randomly divided into 5 groups: ischemia reperfusion group (IR), ischemia preconditioning group (IP), remote preconditioning group Ⅰ (RPI), remote preconditioning group Ⅱ (RPII) and pseudo-operation group (PO). The ischemia/reperfusion model was established in vivo. Hemodynamic changes of heart function were observed. Serum cardiac troponin T (cTnT), superoxide dismutase (SOD), malondialdehyde (MDA) and the expression of calreticulin in myocardium were detected. RESULTS: Hemodynamic data, serum cTnT, DA, SOD and the expression of CRT in RPI and IR group were not statistically different (P>0.05). SOD level in IP and RPII group was higher than that in IR group (P<0.05). Accordingly, cTnT, MDA and the expression of CRT in these two groups were lower than those in IR group (P<0.05). CONCLUSION: Remote preconditioning may mimic the protective effect of ischemic preconditioning. Remote preconditioning attenuates myocardial ischemia/reperfusion injury in vivo possibly through down-regulation of CRT expression in rats.