Crataegus oxycantha Extract Attenuates Apoptotic Incidence in Myocardial Ischemia-Reperfusion Injury by Regulating Akt and Hif-1 Signaling Pathways

The objective of the present study was to evaluate the efficacy and mechanism of Crataegus oxycantha (COC) extract in preventing ischemia-reperfusion (IR) injury in an in vivo rat model of acute myocardial infarction induced by a 30-minute regional ischemia followed by 72 hours of reperfusion. The COC extract [100 mg/(kg body weight)] was administered 12 hours after the surgical procedure and then at 24-hour intervals for 3 days. Animals treated with COC extract showed a significant decrease in creatine kinase activity and infarct size. At the molecular level, COC administration resulted in a significant attenuation of PTEN (phosphatase and tensin homolog deleted on chromosome 10) and upregulation of phospho-Akt and c-Raf levels in the heart. As a consequence, cleaved caspase-9 and cleaved caspase-7 levels were significantly downregulated, indicating negative regulation of apoptosis by COC extract. In part with the hypoxia-inducible factor (HIF) signaling pathway, COC extract administration significantly upregulated the prolyl hydroxylase-2 level. In contrast, other proapoptotic proteins such as nuclear factor-kappa B, cytochrome c, apoptosis-inducing factor, and cleaved poly(adenosine diphosphate-ribose) polymerase levels were significantly downregulated in the COC-treated group when compared with the untreated control group. The results suggested that COC extract attenuated apoptotic incidence in the experimental myocardial ischemia-reperfusion model by regulating Akt and HIF-1 signaling pathways.