[Expression of HIF-1a in acute limb ischemia of rats].

OBJECTIVE: To explore the expression of hypoxia-inducible factor 1 alpha (HIF-1a) in rat lower limb skeletal muscle with acute ischemia. METHODS: Acute lower limb ischemia was established in 25 male or female SD rats of 200-250 g by ligating left iliac artery with microsurgical techniques. Gastrocnemius of lower limb was harvest at the time points of sham (0h), 4, 8, 12 and 24 h respectively. Immunohistochemistry, Western blot and real-time polymerase chain reaction (PCR) were used to detect the expression of HIF-1a in lower limb gastrocnemius. RESULTS: There was a low expression of HIF-1a in normal gastrocnemius, but it was highly expressed in lower limb ischemia. With the elongation of ischemia time, its expression increased (P < 0.05), peaked at 4 h and 8 h (P < 0.05) and then declined gradually. CONCLUSION: With a characteristic trend during acute limb ischemia, HIF-1a may play an important role in the adaptive response to acute limb ischemia.