Cardioprotective effects of simvastatin‑loaded nano‑niosomes on cardiomyocytes in cardiac ischemia

Background. Cardiac ischemia is the major cause of morbidity and mortality which can be increased by Statins. This study aimed to increase the effectiveness of simvastatin in the form of niosomes. Methods. In this study, 25 male Wistar rats were divided into 5 groups: control, ischemia (induced by closed LAD), ischemia receiving nano-niosomes, ischemia receiving simvastatin, and ischemia receiving simvastatin-loaded nano-niosomes. One month after the drug injection, RNA was extracted from the heart tissue of the studied groups, cDNA was synthesized, and a real-time PCR test was performed using specific primers. SPSS 21.0 software was used for statistical analysis. Analysis of variance was used to investigate the effect of the interventions, and Tukey's post hoc test was used to investigate a significant difference (P<0.05) between the control groups and other groups as well as between intervention groups. Results. Apoptosis and autophagy increased significantly in the ischemia group compared to the control group (P<0.05). In the simvastatin-loaded nano-niosomes group, compared to the simvastatin group, apoptosis and autophagy showed a significant decrease (P<0.05), and also in both simvastatin-loaded nano-niosomes and simvastatin group, compared to the control group, apoptosis and autophagy showed a significant decrease. (P<0.05). Conclusion. Simvastatin is an effective drug in the recovery of cardiac ischemia, but the main problem in using simvastatin is its instability and degradability, and the use of its niosomes form solves this problem properly. Practical Implications. Simvastatin‑loaded nano‑niosomes is more effective in reducing heart ischemia damage compared to simvastatin.