Page 140 - ITPS-7-2

INNOSC Theranostics and
Pharmacological Sciences Dapsone enhance skin flap survival

condition, the animals were individually housed in rat cages (10% DMSO) orally, while one treatment group received
at room temperature of 24 ± 1°C and a relative humidity dapsone at 5 mg/kg/day, and the other treatment group
of 50–60%. They were subjected to a 12-h light/dark cycle received dapsone at 12.5 mg/kg/day, both dissolved in
and provided ad libitum access to food and fresh water. 10% DMSO. Both vehicle and dapsone treatments were
All procedures conducted in this study adhered to the administered for 5 consecutive days postoperatively, with
National Institute of Health Guide for the Care and Use the first dose administered three hours following the
of Laboratory Animals (National Academy of Sciences, operation. The dose selection of dapsone was based on our
revised in 1996) and were approved by the ethics committee previous studies on the anti-inflammatory properties of
of Tehran University of Medical Sciences (ethics approval this reagent. 32,33
ID: IR.TUMS.MEDICINE.REC.1399.867).
2.4. Surgical procedure
2.2. Drugs
The surgical procedures were performed by an author
Dapsone was procured from Sigma-Aldrich blinded to the treatment conditions under sterile conditions.
(United Kingdom) and was dissolved in 10% dimethyl Before surgery, all rats underwent a 12 h fasting period.
sulfoxide (DMSO). The dapsone solution was freshly General anesthesia was induced by intraperitoneal injection
prepared before administration and delivered through of a solution containing ketamine HCl (90 mg/mL) and
oral gavage using 18-gauge stainless steel feeding tubes xylazine HCl (10 mg/mL). Maintenance of deep anesthesia
with rounded tips for rats. For anesthesia during surgical was achieved through intermittent administration of
procedures, ketamine HCl and xylazine HCl were ketamine alone. Dorsal hair was removed using an electric
administered intraperitoneally. These anesthetic agents razor, and this surgical site was prepared using a povidone-
were purchased from Gedeon Richter Ltd. (Hungary) and iodine solution. To prevent hypothermia, a heat-emitting
Bayer AG (Germany), respectively. light was located next to the rats during the operation. The
random-pattern skin flap model described by McFarlane
2.3. Study design et al. 12,34,35 was employed. The procedure involved creating
To investigate the effect of dapsone on flap survival, 24 a bipedicled dorsal skin flap measuring 8 cm in length and
rats were randomly assigned to four equal groups: a sham 2 cm in width, positioned on the midline of the dorsum of
group, a control group, and two treatment groups. The sham each rat, with the iliac crest serving as a constant anatomic
group included rats that underwent anesthesia while their landmark defining the caudal margin of the flap. Each
whole skin remained intact. Dorsal skin, in accordance flap was cleaved beneath the panniculus carnosus and
with our flap design, was acquired and utilized as the elevated, with the cranial pedicle clamped to allow for the
baseline for our immunohistopathological assessments. cauterization of perforating vessels, establishing a random
Rats in the remaining groups underwent dorsal skin flap ischemic pattern. Afterward, the clamp was removed, and
procedures. Rats in the control group received vehicle the cranial pedicle was cut to ensure blood perfusion solely

Figure 1. Overview of the study

Volume 7 Issue 2 (2024) 3 doi: 10.36922/itps.2241