Early diagnosis of rats with acute myocardial infarction by measurement of brain natriuretic peptide

The aim of this study was to detect early changes (within 1-4 h) in the brain natriuretic peptide (BNP) levels of rats with acute myocardial infarction (AMI). A total of 35 Wistar rats were established as models of AMI and 30 sham-operated rats were used as the control group. The myocardia of the two groups were observed using a transmission electron microscope (TEM) prior to and following surgery. A double-antibody sandwich enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) was used to detect the serum BNP and cardiac troponin I (cTnI) concentrations before and 1-4 h after surgery. Following the successful establishment of the AMI models, serum BNP concentrations were significantly increased within 1-4 h compared with the values prior to surgery and with those of the control group (all P<0.01). The serum BNP concentration reached its highest level 2 h after AMI (532.25 +/- 15.16 ng/l). No significant changes were observed in the cTnI serum levels of the AMI group within 1-4 h compared with the values before AMI and those in the control group (all P>0.05). In the 1-4 h following the establishment of the AMI model, significant positive correlations were identified between the serum BNP concentrations and the size of the AMI and the most marked correlation occurred 2 h after AMI (r=0.72, P<0.05). No significant differences were noted in the serum concentrations of BNP and cTnI in the control group prior to and following the sham surgery (all P>0.05). BNP may be used as a blood marker for the early diagnosis of AMI, particularly 1-4 h after the onset of AMI, and to predict the size of the infarct area.