Evaluation of the effects of rosmarinic acid on red blood cell deformability, morphology, and nitric oxide in rat lower limb skeletal muscle ischemia-reperfusion injury

Our findings indicate that rosmarinic acid treatment administered prior to ischemia provides protective effects against erythrocyte deformation and morphological deterioration. It is suggested that the improvement in deformability may be mediated by increased SOD activity, which reduces reactive oxygen anions, by-products of nitric oxide (NO) production, thereby exerting an antioxidant effect and enhancing the beneficial actions of NO.