Pentoxifylline in Ischemia-Induced Acute Kidney Injury in Rats

Ischemia is an important cause of acute kidney injury (AKI). Pentoxifylline has been shown to improve tissue oxygenation and endothelial function and inhibit proinflammatory cytokine production. The aim of this study was to evaluate a possible renal protective effect of pentoxifylline against ischemia by measuring mitochondrial respiratory metabolism as an index of cell damage. Rats were submitted to right nephrectomy. The left kidney was submitted to ischemia by clamping the renal artery for 45 minutes. Immediately after release of the clamp, 1 mL of a solution containing 20 mg of pentoxifylline/mL was injected intravenously, while a control group received 1 mL of normal saline intravenously. Five minutes after the injection, the left kidney was removed, homogenized, and subjected to refrigerated differential centrifugation. Mitochondrial respiratory metabolism was measured polarographically. The mitochondria isolated from the kidneys of saline-treated rats had an endogenous respiration of 9.20 ± 1.0 ηmo...