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Updated: Jun 25, 2026

The Hypoxic Ischemic Encephalopathy Model of Perinatal Ischemia
Published on: November 19, 2008
Cardiorespiratory and Neuroprotective Effects of Caffeine in Neonate Animal Models
Daniel Mota-Rojas1, Dina Villanueva-García2, Ismael Hernández-Ávalos3
1Neurophysiology, Behavior and Animal Welfare Assessment, Universidad Autónoma Metropolitana (UAM), Mexico City 04960, Mexico.
Abstract:
Caffeine is widely used to improve neonatal health in animals with low vitality. Due to its pharmacokinetics and pharmacodynamics, caffeine stimulates the cardiorespiratory system by antagonism of adenosine receptors and alteration in Ca+2 ion channel activity. Moreover, the availability of intracellular Ca+2 also has positive inotropic effects by increasing heart contractibility and by having a possible positive effect on neonate vitality. Nonetheless, since neonatal enzymatic and tissular systems are immature at birth, there is a controversy about whether caffeine is an effective therapy for newborns. This review aims to analyze the basic concepts of caffeine in neonatal animal models (rat and mouse pups, goat kids, lambs, and piglets), and it will discuss the neuroprotective effect and its physiological actions in reducing apnea in newborns.
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