Effect of intravenous taurine on endotoxin-induced acute lung injury in sheep

Objective: To find out if pretreatment with taurine would reduce the severi ty of endotoxin-induced acute lung injury in a large animal model. Design: Randomised controlled study under licence from the Department of He alth. Setting: Department of Surgical Research, Ireland. Animals: 15 male Suffolk sheep. Interventions: Vascular catheters were placed in the femoral artery and vei n and a Swan-Ganz catheter in the external jugular vein under general anaes thetic. Animals were randomized into three groups: control with measurement s taken at baseline and half hourly up to 90 minutes; endotoxin, given Esch erichia coli endotoxin intravenously after baseline measurements and taurin e given 300 mg/kg 1 hour before endotoxin was given. Results: Endotoxin induced a severe lung injury characterised by a decrease in mean systemic blood pressure and an increase in pulmonary artery pressu re, hypoxia, and an increase in pulmonary myeloperoxidase activity. Conclusions: This data suggest that taurine may have a therapeutic role in preventing the lung injury seen in endotoxaemia.