Effects of resveratrol in storage solution on adhesion molecule expression and nitric oxide synthesis in vein grafts

Endothelial injury in human saphenous vein grafts may occur during harvesting and storage, which may have an adverse effect on coronary artery bypass grafting outcome. In this study, we sought to determine whether resveratrol, a natural antioxidant enriched in grape, can limit endothelial activation and reduce endothelial injury in human saphenous vein grafts.

Human saphenous vein grafts, obtained from 8 patients and divided into two equal groups of control and study specimens, were stored in either heparinized blood (group A) or heparinized blood containing 50 microg/mL resveratrol (group B) for 1 hour at room temperature. Specimens were analyzed by Western blotting to quantify intercellular adhesion molecule-1, vascular cell adhesion molecule-1, and inducible nitric oxide synthase-2 expression, as well as tissue cyclic guanylate monophosphate levels. Myeloperoxidase activity, a marker of neutrophil sequestration in human saphenous vein grafts, was also measured in each group.

Intercellular adhesion molecule-1 expression (1,674 +/- 332 versus 559 +/- 282; p = 0.003), vascular cell adhesion molecule-1 expression (753 +/- 183 versus 472 +/- 151; p = 0.025), and myeloperoxidase activity (7.00 +/- 1.05 versus 1.33 +/- 0.45 nm/min; p = 0.004) were significantly lower in group B. In contrast, inducible nitric oxide synthase-2 expression (548 +/- 237 versus 2,234 +/- 726; p = 0.004) and tissue cyclic guanylate monophosphate levels (2.02 +/- 0.53 versus 5.61 +/- 0.89 pmol/mL; p = 0.001) were significantly higher in group B.

Resveratrol reduced upregulation of leukocyte-endothelial cell adhesion molecule expression in human saphenous vein graft endothelium and decreased neutrophil adhesion to saphenous vein graft endothelium. Resveratrol also augmented inducible nitric oxide synthase-2 expression and increased cyclic guanylate monophosphate levels. These results suggest that resveratrol might improve vascular homeostasis and reduce endothelial injury during the hypoxic storage period of human saphenous vein grafts for coronary artery bypass grafting.