Protective Effects of Hydrogen Gas Inhalation for Hindlimb Ischaemia-Reperfusion Injury in a Mouse Model.

OBJECTIVE: Ischaemia-reperfusion (I/R) injury is a severe post-operative complication that triggers an inflammatory response and causes severe damage. Hydrogen gas has anti-oxidant and anti-apoptotic properties and has been shown to be safe in humans. The study aimed to investigate whether hydrogen gas protects against skeletal muscle I/R injury.

METHODS: Experimental basic research using mice. A total of 160 eight to 10 week old albino laboratory bred strain of house mice (25.8 ± 0.68 g) were used in this study. The mice were cable tied to the hindlimb under anaesthesia and then placed in an anaesthesia box filled with air and 2% isoflurane (control group); 80 mice were additionally subjected to 1.3% hydrogen gas in this mix (hydrogen group). After 2 hours, cable ties on the mice were removed to initiate reperfusion, and hydrogen inhalation lasted for 6 hours in the hydrogen group. After 6 hours, the mice were taken out of the box and kept in cages under standard conditions until time for observation at 16 different time points after reperfusion: 0, 2, 4, 6, 8, and 10 hours and one, two, three, four, five, six, seven, 14, 21, and 28 days. Five mice were sacrificed using excess anaesthesia at each time point, and the bilateral hindlimb tissues were harvested each time. The inflammatory effects of I/R injury were assessed by evaluating serum interleukin-6 concentrations using enzyme linked immunosorbent assay, as well as histological and immunohistochemical analyses. Untreated mice with I/R injury were used as controls.

RESULTS: Hydrogen gas showed protective effects associated with a reduction in inflammatory cell infiltration (neutrophils, macrophages, and lymphocytes), a reduced area of damaged muscle, maintenance of normal muscle cells, and replacement of damaged muscle cells with neoplastic myocytes.

CONCLUSION: Inhalation of hydrogen gas had a protective effect against hindlimb I/R injury in mice, in part by reducing inflammatory cell infiltration and preserving normal muscle cells.