Polyadenosine diphosphate-ribose polymerase inhibition modulates skeletal muscle injury following ischemia reperfusion

HYPOTHESIS: Polyadenosine diphosphate-ribose polymerase (PARP) has been implicated as a mediator of inflammation and tissue necrosis in murine models of human stroke and myocardial infarction. This study was designed to determine whether PARP modulates skeletal muscle injury and cytokine-growth factor levels during ischemia-reperfusion. DESIGN: Prospective controlled animal study. SETTING: Medical school-affiliated university hospital. INTERVENTIONS: Mice were divided into 2 groups-treated (PJ) and untreated; all mice were subjected to unilateral hind limb tourniquet ischemia followed by 4 or 48 hours of reperfusion. In treated mice, PJ34, an ultrapotent-specific PARP inhibitor was given immediately before ischemia and prior to reperfusion. A group of PARP-1 knockout mice (PARP-/-) were also subjected to hind limb ischemia followed by 48 hours of reperfusion. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: After ischemia-reperfusion, muscle was harvested for measurement of edema, viability, cytokine, and vascular endothelial growth factor content. RESULTS: The PJ34-treated mice had increased skeletal muscle viability when compared with the untreated mice after 4 and 48 hours of reperfusion (P<.01). Viability between PARP-/- and PJ34-treated mice were similar at 48 hours of reperfusion (P>.05), and it exceeded that of untreated mice (P<.01). Tissue edema was unaltered by PARP inhibition. Tissue levels of cytokine were only different (P<.05) in PJ34-treated vs untreated mice at 48 hours of reperfusion. Vascular endothelial growth factor levels in PJ34-treated mice were markedly reduced when compared with untreated mice only after 4 hours of reperfusion (P<.01), and in PARP-/- mice (P<.01) at 48 hours of reperfusion. CONCLUSIONS: Polyadenosine diphosphate-ribose polymerase modulates skeletal muscle viability, cytokine and vascular endothelial growth factor synthesis during reperfusion. Polyadenosine diphosphate-ribose polymerase inhibition may represent a novel method to modulate skeletal muscle ischemia-reperfusion injury.