Papillary muscle and left ventricle show different contractile and metabolic responses during myocardial stunning

Abstract

We conclude that a global ischemic/hypoxic insult results in a heterogeneous response of mechanical and mitochondrial performance in isolated Langendorff-perfused hearts. The results warn against the use of models of stunning in which stunning is determined for only one part (e.g. left ventricle) and effects of stunning are analyzed in other parts (e.g. right ventricular muscle). The results further suggest that some parts of the myocardium under some mechanical loading conditions can withstand 15 min of interrupted oxygen supply without strong negative effects on contractile function and the response time of oxidative phosphorylation.