EVALUATION OF MITOCHONDRIAL FUNCTION IN ISCHEMIC AND REPERFUSED HEARTS TREATED WITH HEAT SHOCK PROTEIN 10 KDA (HSP10).

Ischemic heart disease is currently the leading cause of death in Brazil and worldwide. During infarction, the reduction or interruption of blood flow results in an imbalance between oxygen supply and demand. Immediate restoration of blood flow (reperfusion) is essential for myocardial survival, however, reperfusion itself can cause injury. One strategy to reduce ischemia and reperfusion injury is novel cardiomyokines. Recently, we described the 10 kDa heat shock protein (HSP10) as one of these cardiomyokines. This protein is secreted by ischemic preconditioning stimulation. However, it is still unclear how this protein acts to prevent these injuries.