Cardiovascular research
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Cardiovascular research · Sep 2012
Cardioprotection evoked by remote ischaemic preconditioning is critically dependent on the activity of vagal pre-ganglionic neurones.
Innate mechanisms of inter-organ protection underlie the phenomenon of remote ischaemic preconditioning (RPc) in which episode(s) of ischaemia and reperfusion in tissues remote from the heart reduce myocardial ischaemia/reperfusion injury. The uncertainty surrounding the mechanism(s) underlying RPc centres on whether humoral factor(s) produced during ischaemia/reperfusion of remote tissue and released into the systemic circulation mediate RPc, or whether a neural signal is required. While these two hypotheses may not be incompatible, one approach to clarify the potential role of a neural pathway requires targeted disruption or activation of discrete central nervous substrate(s). ⋯ These data indicate a crucial dependence of RPc cardioprotection against ischaemia/reperfusion injury upon the activity of a distinct population of vagal pre-ganglionic neurones.