Z-VAD reduces tissue injury and preserves leg function following prolonged ischemia and reperfusion.

Mouse hind limb was subjected to 90 or 120 minutes of ischemia by aortic cross-clamping followed by 3 hours of reperfusion. (A) CK concentrations were determined in animals pretreated with z-VAD (5 μg/g body weight) or DMSO (0.1 μL/g body weight). Values represent means ± SEM. *P < .05 vs DMSO. (B) Leg function was scored as 1 (nonfunctional) to 7 (functional), as described in “Materials and methods.”