The effects of allopurinol and SOD on lipid peroxidation and energy metabolism in the liver after ischemia in an aerobic/anaerobic persufflation

This study was aimed at examining the vulnerability of the liver to oxygen-free radicals upon reoxygenation after prolonged ischemia. Livers from male Wistar rats were first flushed with Ringer's and Euro-Collins solutions. After ischemic storage in Krebs-Henseleit solution at 37°C for 60 min and in Euro-Collins solution at 4°C for another 60 min, they were then persufflated with either gaseous O₂ or N₂ for 30 min at 37°C, and rinsed again with Ringer's solution. Enzyme concentrations and calcium ion activities were measured in the effluent rinsing solution after passage through the liver. Treatment with superoxide dismutase (SOD) or allopurinol resulted in a significant reduction of tissue injury, determined by the enzyme loss, calcium uptake, and lipid peroxidation upon persufflation with O₂. Allopurinol also improved the tissue levels of ATP and the sum of adenine nucleotides after aerobic persufflation, whereas SOD did not. Notwithstanding, neither treatment had any effect on anoxic persufflation with N₂. Thus, we conclude that the postischemic liver is susceptible to oxygen-induced free radical injury and that allopurinol and SOD promote specific antioxidative protection of the liver, with the exclusion of side effects related to substrates or perfusion modalities.