title: Redox status of acute pancreatitis as measured by cyclic voltammetry: initial rodent studies to assess disease severity.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To determine whether serum antioxidant capacity as measured by the electrochemical technique cyclic voltammetry could be used to resolve differences in the severity of an inflammatory disease such as acute pancreatitis.
  
  
  METHODS
  Experimental animal study.
  
  
  METHODS
  Animal laboratory, Department of Surgery, Faculty of Medical and Health Sciences, University of Auckland, New Zealand.
  
  
  METHODS
  Male Wistar rats.
  
  
  METHODS
  A total of 48 inbred male Wistar rats were studied in five experimental groups. Group 1 (baseline reference, immediate euthanasia, n = 14) had no surgical intervention. Group 2 (sham, n = 9) had identical surgical procedures to the pancreatitis groups except for the intraductal infusion. Groups 3-5 (n = 9, n = 10, and n = 6, respectively) had acute pancreatitis induced by the pancreatic intraductal infusion of 3%, 4%, or 5% sodium taurocholate, respectively. Groups 2-5 were killed after 12 hrs.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Cyclic voltammetry involves scanning the voltage of a working electrode while recording the anodic current produced as the low molecular weight antioxidants in the solution are oxidized on the surface of the working electrode. The current produced is proportional to the combined concentration of the antioxidants. There was a significant positive correlation of the first cyclic voltammetric peak maximum with pancreatic histologic severity (Spearman's r = .51, p = .007) and with a number of other markers of systemic severity, notably bicarbonate (r = -.57, p = .002), base excess (r = -.65, p < .001), urea (r = .68, p < .001), and calcium (r = -.60, p = .008). The first cyclic voltammetric peak maximum was superior at indicating the severity of the disease state compared with a standard method of total antioxidant capacity measurement.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  In experimental pancreatitis, the first cyclic voltammetric peak maximum showed significant correlations with histologic and systemic indices of severity. Further clinical studies are now needed to define the role of cyclic voltammetry in monitoring the progression of this and other severe illness in the critical care setting.
authors.affiliation: Department of Surgery, Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences, University of Auckland, New Zealand.
authors.forename: Anubhav
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Mittal
authors.forename: Richard J
authors.initials: RJ
authors.lastname: Flint
authors.forename: Medhat
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Fanous
authors.forename: Brett
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Delahunt
authors.forename: Paul A
authors.initials: PA
authors.lastname: Kilmartin
authors.forename: Garth J S
authors.initials: GJ
authors.lastname: Cooper
authors.forename: John A
authors.initials: JA
authors.lastname: Windsor
authors.forename: Anthony R J
authors.initials: AR
authors.lastname: Phillips
mesh_terms: D000208:Acute Disease; D000818:Animals; D001790:Blood Physiological Phenomena; D004563:Electrochemistry / Q000379:methods; D008297:Male; D010084:Oxidation-Reduction; D010195:Pancreatitis / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000378:metabolism*; D051381:Rats; D017208:Rats, Wistar; D012720:Severity of Illness Index