†These authors contributed equally.
Academic Editor: Graham Pawelec
Background: As a fatal cardiovascular complication,
coronary microembolization (CME) results in severe cardiac dysfunction and
arrhythmia associated with myocardial inflammation and apoptosis. Human urinary
kallidinogenase (HUK) can provide a protective function for cardiomyocytes by
improving microcirculation. However, the therapeutic effects and underlying
mechanisms of HUK in CME-induced myocardial injury remain unclear.
Aims: We evaluated the effect of HUK on cardiac protection in a
rat model of CME and whether it could restrain myocardial inflammation and
apoptosis, and alleviate CME-induced myocardial injury. Methods: We
established the CME model by injecting 42