Journal article
Increased myocardial methionine-enkephalin with reduced arterial oxygenation in congenital heart disease
OWV Van Den Brink, AD Cochrane, FL Rosenfeldt, DJ Penny, S Pepe
Journal of Paediatrics and Child Health | WILEY | Published : 2014
Abstract
Background: Cardiac opioid peptides have been identified to exert important adaptive metabolic signalling for cardioprotection against ischaemia or hypoxia-related injury. Aims: To determine myocardial methionine-enkephalin content in children with hypoxemic congenital heart defects and to correlate myocardial content of methionine-enkephalin with the extent of arterial oxygen desaturation.Methods: Children (n= 20, median age of 16 months), undergoing cardiac surgical repair (tetralogy of Fallot, 17/20), were included in this study. Arterial oxygen saturation was measured on admission. Myocardial samples obtained during surgery were assayed via radioimmunochemistry for methionine-enkephalin ..
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Funding Acknowledgements
We thank Dr Paul Brooks and Glenda Rolley for assistance with patient database notes. This work was supported in part by project and grant-in-aid funding from the National Health and Medical Research Council of Australia and the National Heart Foundation of Australia, respectively. OWV van den Brink received part-stipend research scholarships from The Alfred Hospital, Cornelis Vrolijk Development Fund, Dr Hendrik Muller Vaderlandsch Fonds and the Fundatie van de Vrijvrouwe van Renswoude. All authors have no conflicts of interest to declare.