In vitro System Measures Cellular Responses to Oxygen Changes During Ischemia and Reperfusion

The lack of oxygen supply accompanies life-threatening diseases such as stroke, myocardial infarction or renal failure. Tissues and cells are temporarily not provided with O₂ (ischemia) and have to develop survival-strategies. Apart from this, cells are exposed to a second threat upon re-oxygenation (reperfusion). Though being pivotal for survival, the sudden reperfusion of tissue induces oxidative stress and inflammatory responses.

Investigation of ischemia-reperfusion effects requires an experimental set-up that imitates rapid changes in O₂ environment while recording its biological effects.

The ischemia-reperfusion model presented here uses a microplate reader with software-controlled O₂ and CO₂ regulation. Changes in oxygenation of HepG2 cells and Cor.4U^® cardiomyocytes were reported by an intracellular oxygen-sensitive probe (MitoXpress^®-Intra, Luxcel Biosciences).