Effects of pretreatment with coenzyme Q10 on myocardial preservation during aortic cross clamping.

A protective effect of coenzyme Q10 on the ischemic and reperfused myocardium was investigated in the isolated working rat heart preparation. Rats were treated intraperitoneally with 30 mg/kg coenzyme Q10, daily for 7 days. The controls were given the same dose of the vehicle. After 25 min of equilibration the hearts were made totally ischemic at 35.5 degrees C for 30 min, arrested with high potassium cardioplegic solution immediately after aortic cross clamping. The recovery of cardiac power in the coenzyme Q10 pretreated group was significantly (P less than 0.05) better than that in vehicle pretreated group. Creatine phosphokinase (CPK) release during reperfusion was significantly (P less than 0.05) reduced by the pretreatment of coenzyme Q10. Tissue analysis for high energy phosphate compounds revealed no significant difference between the two groups. Tissue lactate content at 30 min of ischemia was significantly (P less than 0.001) lower in the coenzyme Q10 pretreated group. These results suggest that pretreatment with coenzyme Q10 is effective for reducing ischemic injury caused by aortic cross clamping.