The Role of Mitochondrial Transition Pore in the Realization of the Cardioprotective Effect of Probiotic Strains in...

The study tested the hypothesis of the involvement of the mitochondrial transition pore (MTP) in the cardioprotective effect of probiotics under conditions of a systemic inflammatory response (SIR) in rats. After the induction of SIR, Lactobacillus acidophilus and Bifidobacterium animalis subsp. lactis were administered orally to rats for 7 days. The MTP blocker cyclosporine A was injected intravenously at a dose of 10 mg/kg 20 min before the start of the isolated heart perfusion using the Langendorff technique. Global 30-min ischemia followed by 90-min reperfusion was modeled, after which the size of the necrosis zone was measured. In the SIR groups, the size of the necrosis zone was significantly greater than in the control (61 (57; 64)% vs (35 (35; 37)%; p < 0.05); an increase in the levels of proinflammatory cytokines and leukocytosis was also noted. In rats treated with probiotics, the size of the necrosis zone were smaller than in the SIR group (47 (34; 52)%; p < 0.05). Injection of MTP blocker cyclosporine A partially abolished the cardioprotective effect of probiotics (the size of the necrosis zone was 54 (50; 55)%; p < 0.05), which indicates the involvement of MTP opening in the mechanisms of probiotic cardioprotection.