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Abstract
This study aimed to evaluate the effect of ligustrazine on levels of amino acid transmitters in the extracellular fluid of striatum following cerebral ischemia/reperfusion (I/R) in male Sprague-Dawley rats. A microdialysis cannula guide was implanted into the right striatum. After recovery, animals underwent a sham operation or middle cerebral artery occlusion (MCAO). Those that developed cerebral ischemia after MCAO were randomized to receive propylene glycol salt water and ligustrazine respectively. Striatal fluid samples were collected from all animals at 15-min intervals after treatment and were subjected to HPLC analysis of aspartic acid, glutamic acid, taurine, and γ-amino butyric acid. Upon the last sample collection, animals were sacrificed and brain tissue specimens were collected for triphenyltetrazolium chloride staining and NeuN staining. Compared with the sham operation, MCAO induced significant neurological deficits and increased striatal concentrations of the four neurotransmitters assessed in a time-dependent manner (P < 0.01). Ligustrazine effectively attenuated the detrimental effects of MCAO on the brain. These observations suggest that ligustrazine as a novel cerebral infarction-protective agent may have potential clinical implications for I/R-related brain damage.
Acknowledgments
This project was supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (81374053, 81173647, 81073139), the Natural Science Foundation of Zhejiang Province (Y2111116 2012C33122, LR12H27001), Zhejiang Provincial Program for the Cultivation of High-Level Innovative Health talents and Key Discipline of Zhejiang Traditional Chinese Medicine (Integrated Traditional and Western Medicine, 2012-XK-A06), and Scientific Research Fund of Zhejiang Province Traditional Chinese Medicine (2013A029, 2014ZA070).