Isoflurane isomers differ in preservation of ATP in anoxic rat hepatocytes.

The volatile anesthetic isoflurane inhibits the precipitous drop of ATP concentration that results from induced anoxia in isolated rat hepatocytes. This change is dose dependent and reaches its maximum at clinically relevant anesthetic concentrations. The use of highly purified isoflurane enantiomers has allowed a demonstration of the difference in the efficacy of the (+) and (-) isomers on the isoflurane-dependent preservation of ATP. The difference in relative potency between isomers was approximately 2.5-fold, with the (-) form being more potent. In a direct test of the anesthetic potency of these isomers, it was shown previously that the (+) isomer was more potent than the (-) isomer. Differences in the order of potency of isoflurane stereoisomers for the "anesthetic" and "metabolic" effects of isoflurane suggest that these effects are independent and may result from interactions with different specific molecular sites.