Protective effects of GV1001 on myocardial ischemia-reperfusion injury

The potential cardioprotective effects of the novel vaccine peptide GV1001 were evaluated in myocardial ischemia-reperfusion injury induced rat models. GV1001 is a human telomerase reverse transcriptase derived peptide, which has been reported to possess both anti-tumor and anti-inflammatory effects. The normal saline (control group) and various concentrations (0.001–10 mg/kg) of GV1001 were administered directly to the right ventricle anterior wall before induction of ischemia. The was induced by Tightening the snare around the left anterior descending coronary artery for 40 min, before releasing the snare for 10 min induced the myocardial ischemia-reperfusion injury and was conducted in Sprague-Dawley rats. The area at risk, histology, apoptotic cells, neutrophils and inflammatory cytokines were analyzed from the excised heart tissue following myocardial ischemia-reperfusion injury. The area at risk was protected by concentrations of GV1001 equal to or higher than 0.01 mg/kg. At 0.1 mg/kg and higher concentrations of GV1001, the hemorrhage in the heart was attenuated, while severe congestion was reported in the control group. Apoptotic cells, myeloperoxidase activity and inflammatory cytokines [tumor necrosis factor (TNF)-α and interleukin (IL)-6] revealed decreased levels in a dose-dependent manner with respect to GV1001 concentration. The group treated with 10 mg/kg GV1001 demonstrated 59.73% apoptotic cells (P<0.001), 48.14% neutrophil contents (P<0.001), 55.63% TNF-α (P<0.01) and 42.35% IL-6 (P<0.01) levels, compared with the control group. The novel vaccine peptide GV1001 provided protective effects on myocardial ischemia-reperfusion injury and, therefore, it should be considered as an alternative potential anti-inflammatory agent for myocardial ischemia-reperfusion injury.