ABSTRACT
AIM: To investigate the ameliorative effect of water extract of propolis (WEP) preconditioning on mesenteric microcirculation of rats subjected to small intestinal ischemia reperfusion (I/R). METHODS: Thirty-two male Wistar rats were randomly divided into sham, I/R and WEP (100, 200 mg/kg) preconditioning groups. Model of small intestinal I/R injury was made by clamping super mesenteric artery for 45 min followed by 120 min of reperfusion in rats. Mesenteric microcirculation was detected at the end of reperfusion. The degree of small intestinal injury was The content of soluble intercellular adhesion molecule-1 (sICAM-1) in plasma and myeloperoxidase (MPO) activity in intestinal tissue were detected using enzyme linked-immuno-sorbent assay (ELISA) and spectrophotometer, respectively. RESULTS: (1) WEP preconditioning alleviated significantly the pathologic lesion in small intestine, and wet/dry ratio, compared to those in I/R group (P<0.01). (2) The disturbance of the blood flow in microvessel induced by I/R was improved significantly by WEP. In addition, WEP preconditioning alleviated significantly the decrease in diameters of microvessels and microcirculatory blood velocity (P<0.05 vs I/R group) and inhibited the adherence of leukocytes to venule (P<0.01 vs I/R group) in a dose-dependent manner. SICAM-1 content in plasma and MPO activity in intestinal tissue were decreased in WEP preconditioning group, compared to those in I/R group (P<0.05 or P<0.01). CONCLUSION: WEP preconditioning ameliorates mesenteric microcirculation of rats subjected to small intestinal I/R through suppressing the activation of polymorphonuclear neutrophils mediated by ICAM-1.