Protective effects of preischemic treatment with pioglitazone, a peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor-γ ligand, on lung ischemia-reperfusion injury in rats

Lung injury induced by ischemia-reperfusion is the main cause of early graft failure after lung transplantation, which may result from oxygen-free radicals, inflammatory cytokine production, and polymorphonuclear leukocyte accumulation into the interstitium, resulting in severe lung edema. Peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor-gamma (PPAR-gamma) belongs to the nuclear receptor superfamily and has an anti-inflammatory effect by preventing the activation of transcription factors such as nuclear factor-kappaB (NF-kappaB). NF-kappaB regulates the expression of many genes of early response products in the development of acute inflammation. We examined the effects of pioglitazone, a synthetic ligand of PPAR-gamma, against lung ischemia-reperfusion injury in rats.