Anesthesia and analgesia
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Anesthesia and analgesia · May 2014
The antiapoptotic effect of remifentanil on the immature mouse brain: an ex vivo study.
The use of remifentanil in a context of potential prematurity led us to explore ex vivo the opioid effects on the immature mouse brain. Remifentanil enhances medullary glutamatergic N-methyl-D-aspartate (NMDA) receptor activity. Furthermore, in neonatal mouse cortex, NMDA was previously shown to exert either excitotoxic or antiapoptotic effects depending on the cortical layers. With the use of a model of acute cultured brain slices, we evaluated the potential necrotic and apoptotic effects of remifentanil, alone or associated with its glycine vehicle (commercial preparation of remifentanil, C.P. remifentanil), on the immature brain. ⋯ The present data indicate that at a supraclinical concentration C.P. remifentanil had no pronecrotic effect but exerted ex vivo antiapoptotic action on the immature mouse brain, involving the opioid and NMDA receptors, and the mitochondrial-dependent apoptotic pathway. Assessment of the impact of the antiapoptotic effect of remifentanil in in vivo neonatal mouse models of brain injury will also be essential to measure its consequences on the developing brain.
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Anesthesia and analgesia · May 2014
Thrombomodulin improved liver injury, coagulopathy, and mortality in an experimental heatstroke model in mice.
Heatstroke is a life-threatening illness and causes high mortality due to multiple organ injuries. Thrombomodulin (TM) is an endothelial anticoagulant cofactor that plays an important role in the regulation of intravascular coagulation. In this study, we investigated the effect of TM on the inflammatory process, liver function, coagulation status, and mortality in experimental heatstroke. ⋯ This study demonstrated that recombinant soluble TM suppressed plasma cytokines and HMGB1 concentrations after heat exposure. Recombinant soluble TM also improved liver injury and coagulopathy. Recombinant soluble TM treatment improved mortality even with delayed treatment. Recombinant soluble TM may be a beneficial treatment for heatstroke patients.