Pre- and postconditioning depend on the activation of adenosine receptors (ARs) at the end of the index ischemia. The aim of this study was to determine which receptor subtypes must be activated. In situ mouse hearts underwent 30 min of regional ischemia, followed by 2 h of reperfusion. As expected, either ischemic postconditioning (6 cycles of 10 s of reperfusion and 10 s of coronary occlusion) or infusion of the selective A_2b adenosine receptor (A_2bAR) agonist BAY60-6583 (BAY60) for 60 min, starting 5 min before reperfusion reduced infarct size in wild-type C57Bl/6N mice. Protection from either was abolished by the selective A_2bAR antagonist MRS-1754, confirming a role for A_2bAR. Additionally, the coadministration of ischemic postconditioning and a selective A_2aAR antagonist led to the loss of protection as well. 5′-Ectonucleotidase (CD73) is thought to be necessary for the production of adenosine during ischemia. As predicted, ischemic postconditioning did not protect CD73 knockout mice. Selective agonists of either A_2bAR (BAY60) or A_2aAR (CGS-21680), as well as the coadministration of ischemic postconditioning and BAY60, also failed to protect hearts of the CD73 knockout mice. But the nonselective A₁/A₂AR agonist 5′-( N-ethylcarboxamido)adenosine (NECA) was protective, suggesting that the activation of multiple AR subtypes might be required. The coadministration of CGS-21680 and BAY60 also elicited profound protection, indicating that two AR subtypes, A_2a and A_2b, must be simultaneously activated for protection to occur.