Nerolidol attenuates isoproterenol-induced acute myocardial infarction in rats

Cardiovascular diseases have high morbidity and mortality rates, and their treatment is not effective in reducing the damage caused by myocardial infarction (MI). This study aimed to investigate whether nerolidol (NRD), a sesquiterpene alcohol, could attenuate MI in an isoproterenol-treated rat model. MI was induced by the administration of two doses of isoproterenol (ISO, 100 mg/kg, i.p.) with an interval of 24 h between doses.The animals were divided into four groups: control (CTR) (vehicle - NaCl 0.9% + Tween 80 0.2%), MI (ISO + vehicle), MI + NRD (50 mg/kg) and MI + NRD (100 mg/kg). An electrocardiogram was performed, and contractile parameters, cardiac enzymes, infarction size, and antioxidant parameters in the heart were measured to evaluate the effects of NRD. The ISO group showed a significant rise in ST segment, QTc, and heart rate associated with a reduction in left ventricular developed pressure (LVDP), + dP/dt, and -dP/dt. In addition, there were increases in levels of creatine kinase (CK), creatine kinase-myocardial band (CK-MB), lactate dehydrogenase (LDH), and thiobarbituric acid (TBARS); reductions in superoxide dismutase (SOD) and catalase (CAT) activities; and an increase in the infarction size. Interestingly, NRD significantly attenuated almost all the parameters of ISO-induced MI mentioned above. Our results suggest that nerolidol attenuates MI caused by ISO by a marked reduction in myocardial infarct size and suppression of oxidative stress.