title: Astragaloside IV enhances cardioprotection of remote ischemic conditioning after acute myocardial infarction in rats.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Remote ischemic conditioning (RIC) has been shown to be a practical method for protecting the heart from ischemic/reperfusion (I/R) injury. In the present study, we investigated whether or not the combination of RIC and Astragaloside IV (AS-IV) could improve cardioprotection against acute myocardial infarction (AMI)-induced heart failure (HF) when compared with individual treatments.
  
  
  METHODS
  A rat model of AMI was established via permanent ligation of the left anterior descending coronary artery (LAD). Postoperatively, the rats were randomly grouped into a sham group (n=10), a model group (n=15), an AS-IV alone group (n=15), an RIC alone group (n=15) and a combined treatment group (AS-IV+RIC; n=15). All treatments were administered for 2 weeks.
  
  
  RESULTS
  After treatment for 2 weeks, the survival rate was improved, the cardiac function was preserved and the infarcted size was limited in AS-IV alone and RIC alone treatment groups compared to the model group, whereas the combined treatment yielded the most optimal protective effects. Additional studies suggested that AS-IV enhanced the cardioprotective effects of RIC by alleviating myocardial fibrosis, suppressing inflammation, attenuating apoptosis and ameliorating impairment of the myocardial ultrastructural.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  AS-IV enhances the cardioprotective effects of RIC against AMI-induced HF and ventricular remodeling, which represents a potential therapeutic approach for preserving cardiac function and improving the prognosis of AMI.
authors.affiliation: First Clinical Medical College, Nanjing University of Chinese Medicine Nanjing 210023, P. R. China.
authors.forename: Songyi
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Cheng
authors.affiliation: Department of Cardiology, Jiangsu Province Hospital of Traditional Chinese Medicine, The Affiliated Hospital of Nanjing University of Chinese Medicine Nanjing 210029, P. R. China.
authors.forename: Peng
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Yu
authors.affiliation: First Clinical Medical College, Nanjing University of Chinese Medicine Nanjing 210023, P. R. China.
authors.forename: Li
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Yang
authors.affiliation: Department of Cardiology, Jiangsu Province Hospital of Traditional Chinese Medicine, The Affiliated Hospital of Nanjing University of Chinese Medicine Nanjing 210029, P. R. China.
authors.forename: Haibo
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Shi
authors.affiliation: Department of Ultrasonography, Jiangsu Province Hospital of Traditional Chinese Medicine, The Affiliated Hospital of Nanjing University of Chinese Medicine Nanjing 210029, P. R. China.
authors.forename: Anxia
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: He
authors.affiliation: First Clinical Medical College, Nanjing University of Chinese Medicine Nanjing 210023, P. R. China.
authors.forename: Hanyu
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Chen
authors.affiliation: First Clinical Medical College, Nanjing University of Chinese Medicine Nanjing 210023, P. R. China.
authors.forename: Jie
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Han
authors.affiliation: Department of Cardiology, Jinling Hospital, The Affiliated Hospital of Nanjing University Nanjing 210002, P. R. China.
authors.forename: Liang
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Xie
authors.affiliation: Department of Cardiology, Jiangsu Province Hospital of Traditional Chinese Medicine, The Affiliated Hospital of Nanjing University of Chinese Medicine Nanjing 210029, P. R. China.
authors.forename: Jiandong
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Chen
authors.affiliation: Department of Cardiology, Jiangsu Province Hospital of Traditional Chinese Medicine, The Affiliated Hospital of Nanjing University of Chinese Medicine Nanjing 210029, P. R. China.
authors.forename: Xiaohu
authors.initials: X
authors.lastname: Chen
keywords: Astragaloside IV; acute myocardial infarction; cardioprotection; remote ischemic conditioning; ventricular remodeling