Reply: Glucagon-like peptide-1 mediates cardioprotection by remote ischaemic conditioning

We read with interest the Letter by Drs Giblett and Hoole in response to our research article ‘Glucagon-Like Peptide-1 (GLP-1) Mediates Cardioprotection by Remote Ischaemic Conditioning’.1 We thank Drs Giblett and Hoole for their interest in our work and provide our responses to the critical comments raised. First, we believe that it is not entirely appropriate to compare the effects of exogenous application of native GLP-1 or GLP-1 receptor (GLP-1R) agonists with the effects induced by remote ischaemic conditioning (RIc). The efficacy of RIc in protecting against left ventricular dysfunction and myocardial stunning may be compromised by the study design and/or inability of a significant proportion of patients to recruit vagal activity, which appears to be critically important for RIc cardioprotection.2,3 We reported that in rats vagotomy blocks RIc cardioprotection, …