Efficacy of Alkaloids in Alleviating Myocardial Ischemia-Reperfusion Injury in Rats: A Meta-Analysis of Animal Studies

BACKGROUND: Animal models are well established for studying the effects of alkaloids in preventing myocardial ischemia-reperfusion injury. However, few studies have investigated the therapeutic effects of alkaloids in humans. This meta-analysis and systematic review assessed the efficacy of alkaloids in attenuating infarct size in rats with myocardial ischemia-reperfusion injury. METHODS: An integrated literature search including the PubMed, Embase, and Cochrane Library databases was performed to identify studies that evaluated the therapeutic effects of alkaloids on myocardial ischemia-reperfusion injury in rats. The main outcome was infarct size, and SYRCLE's risk of bias tool was used to assess the quality of the studies. RESULTS: 22 studies were brought into the meta-analysis. Compared with the effects of vehicle, alkaloids significantly reduced infarct size (standardized mean difference (SMD) = −0.45; 95% confidence interval (CI) = −0.64 to − 0.26). In subgroup analyses, isoquinoline alkaloids (SMD = −0.43; 95%CI = −0.70 to − 0.16) significantly reduced infarct size versus the control. CONCLUSION: Isoquinoline alkaloids can potentially alleviate myocardial ischemia-reperfusion injury. This meta-analysis and systematic review supply a reference for research programs aiming to develop alkaloid-based clinical drugs. This trial is registered with CRD42019135489.