Physiological and metabolic actions of mycophenolate mofetil on cultured newborn rat cardiomyocytes in normoxia and in simulated ischemia

Mycophenolate mofetil (MMF) is a new immunosuppressive drug used to reduce acute rejection after heart transplantation. As with other immunosuppressive drugs, MMF therapy is associated with several adverse effects. However, the direct effects of MMF on myocardial tissue has not been yet evaluated. The aim of the work was thus to evaluate the effects of MMF on isolated cardiomyocytes (CM) in normal conditions and in an in vitro model of simulated ischemia (SI; substrate-free hypoxia) and reperfusion (R; reoxygenation). Myocyte-enriched cultures were prepared from newborn rat heart ventricles. The transmembrane potentials were recorded using conventional microelectrodes and the cell contracti…