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Updated: Oct 31, 2025
Acute Myocardial Infarction in Rats
Published on: February 16, 2011
A New Model of Heart Failure Post-Myocardial Infarction in the Rat
Honglei Li1, Jiansheng Huang2, Caihong Liu3
1College of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Shandong University of Traditional Chinese Medicine; Department of Intensive Care Unit, Jinan Municipal Hospital of Traditional Chinese Medicine.
Insights
This study presents a new, reliable rat model for heart failure (HF) after myocardial infarction (MI) without requiring a ventilator. This improved model shows reduced variability, aiding research into HF mechanisms and drug development.
Area of Science:
- Cardiovascular Research
- Animal Models
- Myocardial Infarction
Background:
- The rat model of heart failure (HF) post myocardial infarction (MI) using left anterior descending (LAD) coronary artery ligation is common.
- Existing models suffer from high mortality, variability in infarct size and cardiac function, and procedural complexity requiring ventilation or heart exteriorization.
Purpose of the Study:
- To develop a reliable and reproducible rat model of HF post-MI without the need for a ventilator or heart exteriorization.
- To establish a standardized method for inducing MI and subsequent HF in rats for research purposes.
Main Methods:
- Ligation of the LAD coronary artery in rats without using a ventilator or exteriorizing the heart.
- Assessment of cardiac function and damage four weeks post-procedure using serum biomarkers (CK-MB, NT-proBNP, Renin) and left ventricle ejection fraction (LVEF).
- Quantitative analysis of infarct size and cardiac fibrosis using TTC and Masson's trichrome staining.
Main Results:
- Significantly elevated serum CK-MB, NT-proBNP, and Renin levels in the MI group compared to the sham group.
- Markedly reduced LVEF in the MI group, indicating impaired cardiac function.
- Consistent infarct size and cardiac fibrosis area with smaller variations in the MI group, confirming model reproducibility.
Conclusions:
- The developed LAD ligation method provides a reliable and reproducible rat model for HF post-MI.
- This model minimizes procedural complications and variability, making it suitable for studying MI/HF mechanisms.
- The model is valuable for preclinical drug development and testing pharmacological strategies for MI and HF treatment in rats.
Abstract:
Ligation of the left anterior descending (LAD) coronary artery has been widely used to establish the rat model of heart failure (HF) post myocardial infarction (MI). However, the disadvantages of this model include high mortality rate after ligation and larger variations both in the infarct size and the degree of impaired cardiac function. In addition, a ventilator or exteriorization of the heart is indispensable for the previous models, which complicates the procedure during the ligation. In this study, we developed a reliable and reproducible model without the ventilator or exteriorization of the heart by ligating the LAD coronary artery. Four weeks after the procedure, we found that the serum concentrations of CK-MB, NT-proBNP, and Renin, which were used to assist diagnoses of MI and HF, were significantly higher in the MI group compared to the sham group. In contrast, the value of left ventricle ejection fraction (LVEF) in the MI group was obviously less than in the sham group. Furthermore, the infarct size and cardiac fibrosis area were individually confirmed and quantitatively analyzed by TTC staining and Masson's trichrome staining. Smaller variations were found in either infarct size or fibrosis area in the MI group, which helped to develop a reliable and reproducible model of HF post-MI. This new model of HF post-MI in the rat is vital for studying the potential mechanisms of MI and HF. This new method can be used to develop the new drug for treatment of MI and HF in rats by using pharmacological strategies.
