Protective effect of extract of Cordyceps sinensis in middle cerebral artery occlusion-induced focal cerebral ischemia in rats.
BACKGROUND
Ischemic hypoxic brain injury often causes irreversible brain damage. The lack of effective and widely applicable pharmacological treatments for ischemic stroke patients may explain a growing interest in traditional medicines. From the point of view of "self-medication" or "preventive medicine," Cordyceps sinensis was used in the prevention of cerebral ischemia in this paper.


METHODS
The right middle cerebral artery occlusion model was used in the study. The effects of Cordyceps sinensis (Caterpillar fungus) extract on mortality rate, neurobehavior, grip strength, lactate dehydrogenase, glutathione content, Lipid Peroxidation, glutathione peroxidase activity, glutathione reductase activity, catalase activity, Na+K+ATPase activity and glutathione S transferase activity in a rat model were studied respectively.


RESULTS
Cordyceps sinensis extract significantly improved the outcome in rats after cerebral ischemia and reperfusion in terms of neurobehavioral function. At the same time, supplementation of Cordyceps sinensis extract significantly boosted the defense mechanism against cerebral ischemia by increasing antioxidants activity related to lesion pathogenesis. Restoration of the antioxidant homeostasis in the brain after reperfusion may have helped the brain recover from ischemic injury.


CONCLUSIONS
These experimental results suggest that complement Cordyceps sinensis extract is protective after cerebral ischemia in specific way. The administration of Cordyceps sinensis extract significantly reduced focal cerebral ischemic/reperfusion injury. The defense mechanism against cerebral ischemia was by increasing antioxidants activity related to lesion pathogenesis.
School of Basic Medical Sciences, Beijing University of Chinese Medicine, Beijing 100029, P.R China.
Zhenquan
Z
Liu
Pengtao
P
Li
Dan
D
Zhao
Huiling
H
Tang
Jianyou
J
Guo
D000818:Animals; D001522:Behavior, Animal / Q000502:physiology; D002545:Brain Ischemia / Q000188:drug therapy* / Q000201:enzymology / Q000401:mortality / Q000503:physiopathology; D002374:Catalase / Q000378:metabolism; D032661:Cordyceps; D004195:Disease Models, Animal; D004365:Drugs, Chinese Herbal / Q000494:pharmacology / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D005978:Glutathione / Q000378:metabolism; D005979:Glutathione Peroxidase; D005980:Glutathione Reductase / Q000378:metabolism; D005982:Glutathione Transferase / Q000378:metabolism; D018737:Hand Strength / Q000502:physiology; D020244:Infarction, Middle Cerebral Artery / Q000378:metabolism / Q000401:mortality / Q000503:physiopathology / Q000517:prevention & control*; D007770:L-Lactate Dehydrogenase / Q000378:metabolism; D015227:Lipid Peroxidation / Q000187:drug effects; D008297:Male; D051381:Rats; D017208:Rats, Wistar; D000254:Sodium-Potassium-Exchanging ATPase / Q000378:metabolism
D004365:Drugs, Chinese Herbal; D007770:L-Lactate Dehydrogenase; D002374:Catalase; D005979:Glutathione Peroxidase; D005980:Glutathione Reductase; D005982:Glutathione Transferase; D000254:Sodium-Potassium-Exchanging ATPase; D005978:Glutathione