title: dl-3-n-butylphthalide reduces brain damage in mice with closed head injury.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To investigate the protective effect of dl-3-n-butylphthalide (NBP) as an anti-cerebral ischemic drug on brain damage 24 h after closed head injury in mice.
  
  
  METHODS
  Closed head injury was induced by dropping a 50-g weight from a height of 18 cm on a metal impounder resting on the parietal bone in mice.
  
  
  RESULTS
  The neurotraumatic model induced impairment of memory function, significant cerebral edema, and disruption of the blood-brain barrier. dl-3-n-butylphthalide (50 mg.kg-1) given intraperitoneally 5 minutes and 60 minutes after the onset of closed head injury was found to attenuate the impairment of memory function (P < 0.05), alleviate brain edema in the injured cerebral cortex (P < 0.05), and reduce extravasation of plasma protein bound to Evans blue dye by 63.5% (P < 0.01). NBP was also shown to increase the activity of choline acetyltransferase in the injured cortex to 0.83 +/- 0.21 ng.min-1.mg-1 (P < 0.01, compared with 0.48 +/- 0.14 ng.min-1.mg-1 of vehicle group).
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  NBP provides therapeutic response in experimental closed head injury.
authors.affiliation: Institute of Materia Medica, Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences, Peking Union of Medical College, Beijing 100050, China.
authors.forename: Z
authors.initials: Z
authors.lastname: Chong
authors.forename: Y
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Feng
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D001572:Benzofurans / Q000494:pharmacology*; D001812:Blood-Brain Barrier; D001929:Brain Edema / Q000188:drug therapy / Q000503:physiopathology; D001930:Brain Injuries / Q000188:drug therapy* / Q000503:physiopathology; D016489:Head Injuries, Closed / Q000188:drug therapy* / Q000503:physiopathology; D008297:Male; D051379:Mice; D018696:Neuroprotective Agents / Q000494:pharmacology*
chemical_list: D001572:Benzofurans; D018696:Neuroprotective Agents; C027125:3-n-butylphthalide