Dexmedetomidine Ameliorates Lung Injury Induced by Intestinal Ischemia/Reperfusion by Upregulating Cannabinoid Receptor 2, Followed by the Activation of the Phosphatidylinositol 3-Kinase/Akt Pathway

Figure 9

Schematic depicting model of potential molecular mechanism of protection of intestinal I/R-induced lung injury by dexmedetomidine. Dexmedetomidine may confer a protective role against intestinal I/R-induced lung injury by upregulating the CB₂ receptor expression or activating the PI3K/Akt pathway. Treatment with the CB₂ receptor antagonist, AM630, or the PI3K inhibitor, wortmannin, reverses the protective role of DEX by increasing the levels of apoptosis, inflammation, and oxidative stress (as marked by solid arrows). In addition, there may be a potential interaction between CB₂ receptor and the PI3K/Akt pathway. CB2 receptor upregulated by dexmedetomidine may also play a protective role by activating Akt (or other pathways), because treatment with AM630 reduces Akt activation (as shown by dotted lines).