MMP-9 controls onset of paralysis in ALS mice. Sections of muscle stained for nerve (green) and muscle (red); nerve-muscle contacts appear yellow. In the SOD1 mouse, muscles that move the eye (left) retain nerve contacts and are active. Fast leg muscles (center) in the same animal lose nerve contacts (red stain only) and become paralyzed. Fast muscles from which MMP-9 has been genetically removed (right) retain their nerve contacts, and therefore muscle function, for nearly 3 months longer. This suggests that inhibiting MMP-9 in human patients with ALS should be beneficial. Credit: The Henderson Lab/Columbia University Medical Center. Source: MMP-9 Tied to Motor Neuron Loss in ALS
And wouldn't you know it? The anesthetics propofol, sevoflurane, desflurane and lidocaine all inhibit MMP-9. The following articles and papers show that anesthetics strongly inhibit MMP-9 expression:
1. Lidocaine Attenuates Lipopolysaccharide-Induced IL-8, MIP-1α and Matrix Metalloproteinase-9 Production in Human Monocytes
2. Volatile anesthetics reduce invasion of colorectal cancer cells through down-regulation of matrix metalloproteinase-9
3. Propofol inhibits the adhesion of hepatocellular carcinoma cells by upregulating microRNA-199a and downregulating MMP-9 expression