Cardioprotective effect of resistance training and Crataegus oxyacantha extract on ischemia reperfusion-induced oxidative stress in diabetic rats

Discovering an effective approach to limit infarction size after ischemia-reperfusion has a clinical importance in diabetics. We investigated the anti-myocardial ischemia-reperfusion injury effect of resistance training and Crataegus oxyacantha extract on diabetic rats. To this end, 50 male Wistar rats were randomly divided into 5 groups: the sedentary control (SC), sedentary diabetic (SD), resistance trained diabetic (RD), diabetic plus C. oxyacantha extract treatment (CD) and resistance trained diabetic plus C. oxyacantha extract treatment (RCD) groups. Animals in trained groups were subjected to progressive resistance training program with the use of a ladder (5 days/week, for 10 weeks). C. oxyacantha extract rats were treated with 100 mg/kg body weight of the extract using a gavage every day for 10 weeks. After treatments, rats were subjected to ischemia via LAD artery ligation for 30 min followed by 90 min reperfusion. The heart was collected following the ischemia-reperfusion and analyzed for oxidative stress and ischemia-reperfusion injury. Compared to the SC group, LDH, CK-MB and infarction size in the SD group were significantly higher, whereas injury indices in the RCD group were significantly lower than those in the SD group. GPx and MPO levels after reperfusion increased and decreased, respectively in response to training and C. oxyacantha. These findings suggest that 10 weeks resistance training and C. oxyacantha can synergistically decrease ischemia-reperfusion injury, and this mechanism may be related to a reduction in oxidative stress which is normally associated with ischemia-reperfusion.