Effects of hyperbaric oxygen preconditioning on interlukin-23 level in rats after skin flap transplantation

Objective To explore the effects of hyperbaric oxygen preconditioning on ischemia-reperfusion inflammatory reaction of rats after skin flap transplantation. Methods Fifty-six Sprague-Dawley rats were randomly divided into 3 groups: a sham ischemia-reperfusion (SH) group, an ischemia-reperfusion (IR) group and a hyperbaric oxygen reconditioning (HBO) group. Both IR group and HBO group were further divided into 3 subgroups, respectively, according to the time points of serum sampling for test post establishment of the IR model of the abdominal pedicle skin flap transplantation. The IR model of the abdominal pedicle skin flap transplantation was established in all the animals except those in the SH group, with those in the HBO group were preconditioned with HBO twice daily for 3 days before the operation. The blood was sampled at 1, 3 and 5 day post-operation to test the level of IL-23 using enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA). The survival skin flaps were sampled from all the animals at 3 and 5 days after the operation for histological observation and evaluation. Results The average IL-23 level of HBO 3 d subgroup (17.80±14.78) was significantly lower than that of the IR 3 d subgroup (38.91±12.26). The average histological scores of the IR 3 d and 5 d subgroups, as well as HBO 3 d and 5 d subgroups were (2.66±0.44) and (3.2±0.53), (1.85±0.31) and (2.29±0.32), significantly higher than SH group (0.38±0.10). Moreover, the average histological score of the HBO 3 d and 5 d subgroups was significantly lower than IR 3 d and 5 d subgroups respectively. Conclusion Hyperbaric oxygen preconditioning can relieve the ischemia-reperfusion inflammatory reaction through reducing the serum level of IL-23 in rats after skin flap transplantation. Key words: Hyperbaric oxygen preconditioning; Skin flap; Interleukin-23