[Pharmacological studies on sufoxazine (Y-8894). (II). Anti-anoxic effect]

The anti-anoxic effect of sufoxazine was investigated in various cerebral anoxia models with mice, in comparison with those of various cerebroactive drugs. Sufoxazine reduced dose-dependently the duration of coma induced by a sublethal dose of KCN (1.8 mg/kg, i.v.), significantly stimulating recovery from the coma at 5 mg/kg, i.p. and 30 mg/kg, p.o. It also protected against a lethal dose of KCN (2.5 mg/kg, i.v.). Sufoxazine prolonged the survival time of mice subjected to hypobaric and normobaric hypoxia. Dihydroergotoxin and ifenprodil gave similar protection in the KCN-induced anoxia models, but produced adverse effects in the hypoxia models. Calcium hopantenate exerted similar but weak protection only at a dose as high as 300 mg/kg, i.p. These findings suggest that sufoxazine has an anti-anoxic action superior to those of the other cerebroactive drugs used.