title: The effect of tumor necrosis factor-α inhibitor soon after hypoxia-ischemia on heart in neonatal rats.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  Perinatal hypoxic-ischemic insult has acute and long term deleterious effects on many organs including heart. Although tumor necrosis factor alpha (TNF-α) has been reported to increase soon after hypoxia, the inhibition of this mediator has not been documented. The aim of this study was to investigate the effects of a TNF-α inhibitor (etanercept) on contractility and ultrastructure of rat heart muscles exposed to hypoxia-ischemia during neonatal period.
  
  
  METHODS
  Forty-five seven-day old rats divided into three groups were included in this study. The right carotid arteries of Saline and Etanercept groups of rats were ligated and kept in a hypoxia chamber containing 8% oxygen for 2h. Immediately after hypoxia, while Etanercept group was administered 10mg/kg etanercept, Saline group had only saline intraperitoneally. The carotid arteries of rats in Sham group were located without ligation and hypoxia. Mechanical activity of heart was recorded and tissue samples were examined by electron microscopy in the sixteenth week following the hypoxia-ischemia.
  
  
  RESULTS
  While atrial contractile force in Etanercept group was similar to Sham group, there was significant decrease in Saline group (p<0.001). However, there was only non-significant decrease in ventricular contractility of Saline group comparing to Sham group (p>0.05). After hypoxia-ischemia, ultrastructural degenerative changes and mitochondrial damage in atriums of Etanercept group were significantly less severe than Saline group.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  This study demonstrated that neonatal hypoxia-ischemia caused long term cardiac dysfunction and ultrastructural degenerative changes in the heart of rats. TNF-α inhibitor administration soon after hypoxia-ischemia may have heart protective effect.
authors.affiliation: Department of Biophysics, Mersin University Medical Faculty, Mersin, Turkey. bbuyukakilli@yahoo.com
authors.forename: Belgin
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Büyükakilli
authors.forename: Aytuğ
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Atici
authors.forename: Aziz
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Özkan
authors.forename: Ebru
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Balli
authors.forename: Sevgi
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Güneş
authors.forename: Ali Haydar
authors.initials: AH
authors.lastname: Turhan
authors.forename: Olgu
authors.initials: O
authors.lastname: Hallioglu
authors.forename: Arzu
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Kanik
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D000831:Animals, Newborn; D000068800:Etanercept; D000860:Hypoxia / Q000503:physiopathology*; D007074:Immunoglobulin G / Q000494:pharmacology*; D007155:Immunologic Factors / Q000494:pharmacology; D008297:Male; D009200:Myocardial Contraction / Q000187:drug effects; D017202:Myocardial Ischemia / Q000503:physiopathology*; D009206:Myocardium / Q000473:pathology / Q000648:ultrastructure; D051381:Rats; D017208:Rats, Wistar; D018124:Receptors, Tumor Necrosis Factor; D012720:Severity of Illness Index; D013997:Time Factors; D014409:Tumor Necrosis Factor-alpha / Q000037:antagonists & inhibitors*
chemical_list: D007074:Immunoglobulin G; D007155:Immunologic Factors; D018124:Receptors, Tumor Necrosis Factor; D014409:Tumor Necrosis Factor-alpha; D000068800:Etanercept