title: L-arginine action in cutaneous flap evolution under nicotine exposure in rats.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To evaluate whether treatment with L-arginine influences the healing of skin flaps in rats exposed to nicotine.
  
  
  METHODS
  40 male Wistar rats weighing 142.4 ± 10.1 g were separated into four groups: GC: treatment with 7.4 pH phosphate buffer, submitted to skin flap and observation for ten days; GN: exposure to nicotine for four weeks, submitted to skin flap and observation for ten days; GA: treatment with 7.4 pH phosphate buffer for four weeks, submitted to skin flap and arginine treatment for ten days; GAN: exposure to nicotine for four weeks, submitted to skin flap and treatment with arginine for ten days. We evaluated: areas of necrosis, re-epithelialization, inflammatory reaction and formation of granulation tissue by HE stain; the total area of deposition and differentiation of collagens I and III by histometry with picrosirius staining; and the scar vascular density by immunohistochemical staining with monoclonal anti-CD34 antibodies.
  
  
  RESULTS
  The percentages of necrotic areas in GN and GNA were higher (p <0.001) than in GC and GA. In histological scores, collagen deposition, and the percentage of type I collagen, GA and GC were similar to each other (p> 0.05), but higher (p <0.001) than GA and GNA; as for vascular densities, they were lower in GN and GAN (p <0.001) than in GC and GA.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Exposure to nicotine inhibited the effects of arginine and in unexposed mice there was induction of angiogenesis and improvement in the total collagen deposition in the skin flaps.
authors.affiliation: Pontifical Catholic University of Paraná, Curitiba, Paraná Sate - PR, Brazil.
authors.forename: Marcus Vinicius Thomé Nora
authors.initials: MV
authors.lastname: Guimarães
authors.forename: Guilherme Henrique Gonçalves
authors.initials: GH
authors.lastname: Moreira
authors.forename: Luana Parminondi
authors.initials: LP
authors.lastname: Rocha
authors.forename: João Eduardo Leal
authors.initials: JE
authors.lastname: Nicoluzzi
authors.forename: Carlos José Franco
authors.initials: CJ
authors.lastname: de Souza
authors.forename: João Carlos Domingues
authors.initials: JC
authors.lastname: Repka
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D001120:Arginine / Q000494:pharmacology*; D008297:Male; D018919:Neovascularization, Physiologic / Q000187:drug effects; D009538:Nicotine / Q000494:pharmacology*; D051381:Rats; D017208:Rats, Wistar; D012867:Skin / Q000187:drug effects*; D013524:Surgical Flaps; D014945:Wound Healing / Q000187:drug effects*
chemical_list: D009538:Nicotine; D001120:Arginine