Disorder of the contractile function of the nonischemic portion of the heart in experimental infarct and its prevention by the phospholipase inhibitor chloroquine

: Contractility of an isolated rat right auricle was studied one day after producing one day after producing experimental infarction in the left cardiac region, there was a pronounced decrease in elasticity, and contractility was depressed, which manifested in an approximately two-fold decline in the developing tension. These originally stress-induced disturbances were prevented by administering the phospholipase inhibitor chloroquine to the animals prior to infarction. The data obtained indicate that activation of phospholipases might play a role in contractility disturbances of cardiac nonischemized regions under infarction.