Inosine—a natural modulator of contractility and myocardial blood flow in the ischemic heart?

Inosine Augments the Effects of a Nogo Receptor Blocker and of Environmental Enrichment to Restore Skilled Forelimb Use after Stroke

“…Uric acid, a metabolite of inosine, prevents peroxynitrite-induced protein damage, protects the blood-brain barrier, and has potent anti-inflammatory effects (Scott et al, 2002, 2005). Inosine is in use for cardiac patients (Czarnecki et al, 1992), is often taken orally by athletes (Starling et al, 1996), and is in clinical trials for Parkinson’s Disease http://clinicaltrials.gov/ct2/show/NCT00833690. Moreover, studies using radioactive tracers suggest that inosine crosses the blood-brain barrier efficiently (Nakagawa and Guroff, 1973).…”

Inosine Mediates the Protective Effect of Adenosine in Rat Astrocyte Cultures Subjected to Combined Glucose‐Oxygen Deprivation

“…Inosine has been shown to limit hypoxic or ischemic injury in other organ systems. Inosine improves contractility (Czarnecki et al, 1992), delays the time to contracture (Devous and Lewandowski, 1987), and decreases infarct size (Devous and Jones, 1979) in ischemic myocardium. Myocardial protection may be related to the potentiation of adenosine-mediated coronary vasodilation (Van Der Meer and De Jong, 1990), although inosine appears to provide myocardial protection in a cell culture model devoid of vascular effects (Goldhaber et al, 1982).…”

Activation of Adenosine A2a Receptors Inhibits Mast Cell Degranulation and Mast Cell‐Dependent Vasoconstriction

“…Adenosine causes a vasodilation via the well-described A 2 receptors located on vascular smooth muscle (VSM) (3). Inosine, on the other hand, has been reported to cause both positive (4,7,11,25) and negative (1,7,20) inotropic effects and to be either a vasodilator (7,17,25) or a vasoconstrictor (18,19,24).…”