The xanthine oxidase pathway has been proposed as a source of oxygen-derived free radicals in ischemic and reperfused myocardium. A spectrophotometric assay was employed to measure the xanthine oxidase activity of rat and rabbit hearts exposed to varying durations of global ischemia. In the rat 24.6 +/- 4.8 mIU/g wet wt of xanthine dehydrogenase + xanthine oxidase activity were detected in both ischemic and normally perfused myocardium. In the non-ischemic state only 6% of this activity was associated with the free radical-producing oxidase form. After 5 min of ischemia however about 25% of the enzyme was in the oxidase form, a value which remained unchanged over the following 25 min. Neither xanthine dehydrogenase nor xanthine oxidase could be detected in the rabbit heart. Failure of allopurinol, an inhibitor of xanthine oxidase, to limit infarct size in a rabbit model of ischemia/reperfusion provides further evidence that this species has insignificant amounts of xanthine oxidase in its heart. Anesthetized rabbits were subjected to coronary artery ligation for 45 min and 3 h of reperfusion. The volume of the zone of underperfusion was assessed with fluorescent microspheres and infarct size was assessed by tetrazolium staining. In control animals 67.5 +/- 3.8% of the zone of underperfusion became necrotic. In rabbits given superoxide dismutase (15000 IU/kg) + catalase (50,000 IU/kg) for 90 min starting 15 min before occlusion, infarct size was only 35.4 +/- 3.3% of the zone of underperfusion. However, in rabbits pretreated with allopurinol (75 mg p.o. 24 h before study + 30 mg/kg 5 min before occlusion) infarct size was 65.8 +/- 8.7%.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)