The Journal of surgical research
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Hydrogen gas (H(2)) has been considered as a novel antioxidant to selectively reduce the toxic reactive oxygen species (ROS) such as hydroxyl radical (•OH) without affecting the other signal ROS. Our recent study shows that H(2) inhalation is beneficial to traumatic brain injury (TBI) via reducing oxidative stress. In contrast to H(2), hydrogen-rich saline (HS) may be more suitable for clinical application. The present study was designed to investigate whether HS has a protective effect against TBI via reducing oxidative stress in rats. ⋯ Hydrogen-rich saline can exert a protective effect against TBI via reducing oxidative stress. Molecular hydrogen may be a more effective therapeutic strategy for TBI patients.
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Sepsis is associated with high morbidity and mortality, and survivors can present with cognitive dysfunction. The present study was performed to investigate the effects of hydrogen-rich saline (HRS) on oxidative stress in the brain, cognitive dysfunction, and mortality in a rat model of sepsis. ⋯ These findings indicate that HRS could attenuate the consequences of sepsis induced by cecal ligation and puncture in rats, at least in part, by the inhibition of oxidative stress.
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We measured the cardioprotection afforded by sevoflurane postconditioning in streptozotocin-induced diabetic rats (DRs) and determined the roles of glycogen synthase kinase (GSK), phosphatidylinositol-3-kinase/Akt, and extracellular signal-regulated kinase (ERK1/2) in such a procedure. ⋯ The cardioprotection induced by sevoflurane postconditioning is abolished by diabetes. This might be due to the impairment of phosphorylation of GSK-3β and its upstream signaling pathways of phosphatidylinositol-3-kinase/Akt and ERK1/2 in the presence of diabetes.
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Despite the fact that the treatment options for septic patients have been significantly improved, the pathophysiologic changes caused by various septic cases have not been well understood. One commonly observed clinical phenomenon is the onset of a polymicrobial infection caused by bacteria that originate in the intestine but enter the peritoneum via translocation from the gut. This triggers a systemic inflammatory response via the innate immune system, which needs to be well characterized. Cecal ligation and puncture (CLP) is considered to be the gold-standard animal model by establishing infection with mixed bacterial flora and necrotic tissue to induce an inflammatory response. The aim of this study is to analyze the long-term gene expression dynamics in the rats subject to CLP in order to characterize the impact of sepsis upon liver function over an 8-d time period. ⋯ Characterization of long-term hepatic responses to injury is critical to understanding the dynamics of transcriptional changes following the induction of the inflammatory response, and to monitoring its effective resolution. These results showed that each condition has unique dynamics that indicate fundamental differences in the response. Furthermore, the gene ontologies suggest a link to oxidative stress over the long term that may be able to be explored for clinical treatments.
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Renal inflammation has an important role in the development of ischemia-reperfusion injury of the kidney. Cysteinyl leukotrienes have been implicated in many inflammatory conditions. The aim of this study was to investigate the ability of the cysteinyl leukotriene receptor blocker, zafirlukast, to alleviate renal dysfunction and injury in a rat model of renal ischemia-reperfusion injury. ⋯ These results demonstrate that zafirlukast significantly reduces the severity of ischemic acute renal failure, probably via anti-inflammatory action, reduction of neutrophil infiltration into renal tissues, and oxidative stress subsequent to an attenuation of P-selectin expression.