Does glucagon improve the viability of ischemic intestine?

The effects of glucagon, heparin, urokinase, thromboxane synthetase inhibitor (OKY-046), and the free radical scavengers, superoxide dismutase and catalase (SOD + CAT), on the viability of ischemic intestine were evaluated based on various parameters measured. The mucosal blood flow, the fluorescence pattern, and the histopathological findings in a rabbit model with 3.5 hr total vascular occlusion of a short small intestine indicated that glucagon improved the ischemic intestine. Glucagon increased, tremendously, the mucosal blood flow by 112% in the ischemic intestine compared with that of 25% in the nonischemic intestine. This indicated that vascular spasm, not reperfusion injury or thrombosis, played the initial role in the progression of transmural bowel necrosis. In addition, the outcome in the viability of the ischemic intestine was not detected by the fluorescence technique but was able to be detected through the mitochondrial morphology under the electron microscope.