Protective effect of L-carnitine on cardiac metabolic damage induced by doxorubicin in vitro.

Carnitine, a naturally occurring compound which is an important cofactor in the transport of fatty acids within inner mitochondria, aids myocardial cells in efficiently meeting energy requirements. L-Carnitine has been texted in this study as a possible protective agent against doxorubicin-induced cardiac toxicity. Rat heart slices were incubated with doxorubicin (14 micrograms/ml), L-carnitine (600 micrograms/ml), and L-carnitine plus doxorubicin for 60 min at 38 degrees C. Cellular oxygen uptake, ATP, intracellular Ca2+, and 14C-Leucine incorporation were measured. L-carnitine pre-incubation significantly reduced (p less than 0.001) the metabolic cardiac impairment due to doxorubicin. The inhibition of oxygen uptake declined from 38% to 7%; of ATP cellular concentration from 78% to 27%; and that of protein synthesis from 11% to 6%. L-carnitine moreover acts to eliminate completely the Ca2+ increase induced by doxorubicin. Thus, it appears L-carnitine may be useful in the prevention of doxorubicin-induced cardiac toxicity.