The hearts of young (6 months) and aged (24 months) rats, paced at a frequency of 300 bpm, were perfused by the Langendorff technique and subjected to: 20 min of equilibration perfusion, 30 min of global ischemia (95% reduction of the coronary flow) and 20 min of reperfusion. The control group was equilibrated for 20 min and then aerobically perfused for 50 min. After 20 min of stabilization, ATP and ADP levels and the adenine nucleotide pool were significantly higher in young than aged hearts (15% increase), but no modifications were found between the two age groups after 50 min of aerobic perfusion. Even the energy charge did not change under aerobic conditions. At the end of the ischemic period the levels of ATP and ADP decreased to a similar extent in young and aged hearts. After 20 min of reperfusion the myocardial level of ATP remained lower in comparison to the preischemic and control values in both age groups. At the end of the reperfusion there was a decrease in energy charge and creatine phosphate levels in the aged group in respect to the young group. The concentrations of adenosine, hypoxanthine and xanthine in coronary effluents did not change during ischemia and reperfusion irrespective of the age of the animals. On the contrary, the release of uric acid during ischemia and reperfusion was greater in aged than young hearts (90% increase). Moreover, the level of inosine in perfusates during the ischemic period was significantly lower in the 24-month-old group (30% decrease). These results are in accordance with the increased purine nucleoside phosphorylase activity and the decreased hypoxanthine phosphorybosyl-transferase activity found in the myocardium of the aged vs. young rats at the end of the reperfusion period. These data indicate that in the aged rat hearts, when exposed to ischemic and reperfusion conditions, there is a modification of purine breakdown which leads to a greater production of uric acid in respect to that found in young hearts.