title: Neuroprotective effect of human placental extract on hypoxic-ischemic brain injury in neonatal rats.
abstract: We investigated the neuroprotective effects of human placental extracts (HPE) and the effects of HPE on recovery of cognitive and behavioral function on hypoxic-ischemic brain injury in the newborn rat. The right common carotid arteries of 7-day-old rats were coagulated, and rats were then exposed to 8% oxygen. Immediately before and again at three times after the hypoxia-ischemia (pre-treatment group), and immediately after and three times again after hypoxia-ischemia (post-treatment group), the rats were intraperitoneally injected with HPE (0.1, 0.25, or 0.5 mL/10 g/dose). No-treatment rats received saline only. On postnatal day 12, brains were removed and gross morphological damage was evaluated. To quantify the severity of brain injury, bilateral cross-sectional areas of the anterior commissural and posterior hippocampal levels were analyzed with NIH Image. Assessments of the open field activity levels at 2, 4, 6 and 8 week and, the Morris water maze test at 8 weeks after hypoxia-ischemia were carried out according to standard methods. HPE pre-treatment decreased the incidence of liquefactive cerebral infarction, at an optimally neuroprotective dose of 0.5 mL/10 g/dose (P<0.05). In the Morris water maze test, the group injected with HPE at 0.5 mL/10 g/dose concentration showed shorter escape latencies than the no-treatment group (P<0.05). These findings support a protective effect of the HPE treatment on neuronal integrity and cognitive function following hypoxic-ischemic brain injury. Injected at an appropriate dose prior to exposure, HPE may significantly reduce or prevent hypoxic-ischemic injury in the immature brain.
authors.affiliation: Department of Pediatrics, Korea University, College of Medicine, 126-1 Anam-Dong, Sungbuk-Gu, Seoul, Republic of Korea. revivaljy@nate.com
authors.forename: Jee Yoon
authors.initials: JY
authors.lastname: Park
authors.forename: Jung Hye
authors.initials: JH
authors.lastname: Byeon
authors.forename: Sung-Won
authors.initials: SW
authors.lastname: Park
authors.forename: So-Hee
authors.initials: SH
authors.lastname: Eun
authors.forename: Kyu Young
authors.initials: KY
authors.lastname: Chae
authors.forename: Baik-Lin
authors.initials: BL
authors.lastname: Eun
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D001522:Behavior, Animal / Q000187:drug effects; D001921:Brain / Q000187:drug effects*; D004195:Disease Models, Animal; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D020925:Hypoxia-Ischemia, Brain / Q000188:drug therapy / Q000517:prevention & control*; D018782:Maze Learning / Q000187:drug effects; D009043:Motor Activity / Q000187:drug effects; D009474:Neurons / Q000187:drug effects; D018696:Neuroprotective Agents / Q000494:pharmacology / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D010924:Placental Extracts / Q000494:pharmacology / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D011247:Pregnancy; D051381:Rats; D017207:Rats, Sprague-Dawley
chemical_list: D018696:Neuroprotective Agents; D010924:Placental Extracts