Writing in the October issue of the Journal of Molecular and Cellular Cardiology, Vanden Hoek and colleagues say during cardiac arrest, when oxygen and energy are cut off from the cells, wastes build up and become trapped. Once blood flow is restored, the cells switch into overdrive to rid themselves of the toxins and in this revved up state produce an explosion of free radicals that can cause permanent cellular damage.
Antioxidants such as vitamin C and E work by binding to free radicals and preventing them from doing damage to the cells, but they are slow to penetrate the cell membrane. The UC researchers say extracts from baicalensis contain high concentrations of antioxidants, but are able to slip quickly into cells.
The roots of the Scutellaria baicalensis plant -- known as Huang-Quin in Chinese and wogon in Japanese -- have been used for more than 1,000 years to treat allergic and inflammatory diseases. Vanden Hoek says while the extract is still far from human trials, this study paves the way for developing new therapies for cardiac arrest as well as other diseases where oxygen flow is blocked and then restored, such as in a stroke.
