BAX and ischemia: Our results demonstrated that the number of apoptotic cardiomyocytes increased and the Bcl-2/Bax ratio reduced greatly in model group compared with the sham group, whereas HXWTF and isosorbide mononitrate treatment effectively inhibited ischemia-induced up-regulation of the number of apoptotic cardiomyocytes and restored Bcl-2/Bax ratio (Fig. 3a–d).