Blood flow and high-energy phosphates in microregions of left ventricular subendocardium

Blood flow and high-energy phosphate (HEP) content were determined simultaneously in multiple microregions of left ventricular subendocardium in 29 normal anesthetized open-chest rabbits by use of a new micromethod to determine whether a direct linear relationship existed between these parameters. Tissue samples weighed 1-2 mg. ATP and creatine phosphate (CP) content were quantitated in quick-frozen hearts by fluorometry at sites where tissue perfusion was measured by H₂ clearance by use of bare-tipped platinum electrodes. A series of validation studies were conducted to ensure that 1) no significant damage to the tissue surrounding the electrode occurred during the period of experimentation and 2) no significant loss of biochemical constituents had occurred due to labile processes during freezing or storage of the tissue. Blood flow, ATP, and CP values averaged 79.1 ± 24.1 (SD) ml/min^-1/100 g^-1, 4.9 ± 1.3 μmol/g tissue, and 8.0 ± 3.0 μmol/g tissue, respectively, and are similar to those reported in studies using larger tissue samples. Correlation between the heterogeneous distribution of tissue perfusion and HEP revealed no direct linear relationship between these parameters in the normal unstressed rabbit subendocardium.