title: Effect of lavender oil (Lavandula angustifolia) on cerebral edema and its possible mechanisms in an experimental model of stroke.
abstract: Lavender belongs to the family Labiatae and has a variety of cosmetic uses as well as therapeutic purposes in herbal medicine. The present study was conducted to evaluate the protective effect of lavender oil against brain edema and its possible mechanisms in an experimental model of stroke. Under Laser-Doppler Flowmetry, focal cerebral ischemia was induced by the transient occlusion of the middle cerebral artery for 1h in rats. Lavender oil (100, 200, and 400 mg/kg ip (and/or vehicle was injected at the onset of ischemia. Infarct size, cerebral edema, functional outcome, and oxidative stress biomarkers were evaluated using standard methods. Western blotting was used to determine the protein expression of VEGF, Bax, and Bcl-2. Treatment with lavender oil at doses of 200 and 400 mg/kg significantly diminished infarct size, brain edema, and improved functional outcome after cerebral ischemia (P<0.001). Lavender oil (200 mg/kg) also reduced the content of malondialdehyde and increased the activities of superoxide dismutase, glutathione peroxidase, and total antioxidant capacity (P<0.001). Although lavender oil enhanced VEGF expression (P=0.026), it could not decrease the Bax-to-Bcl-2 ratio (pro- to anti-apoptotic proteins) in the rat brain (P>0.05). The results indicated that lavender oil has neuroprotective activity against cerebral ischemia and alleviated neurological function in rats, and the mechanism may be related to augmentation in endogenous antioxidant defense, inhibiting oxidative stress, and increasing VEGF expression in the rat brain. However, lavender oil could not suppress the apoptosis pathway.
authors.affiliation: Laboratory of Cerebrovascular Research, Research Center and Department of Physiology, School of Medicine, Semnan University of Medical Sciences, Semnan, Iran. Electronic address: ab.vakili@yahoo.com.
authors.forename: Abedin
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Vakili
authors.affiliation: Laboratory of Cerebrovascular Research, Research Center and Department of Physiology, School of Medicine, Semnan University of Medical Sciences, Semnan, Iran.
authors.forename: Shaghayegh
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Sharifat
authors.affiliation: Skin Research Center-Laboratory of Protein and Enzyme, Shahid Beheshti University (M.C.), Shohada-e Tajrish Hospital, Shahrdari St., 1989934148 Tehran, Iran.
authors.forename: Maziar Mohammad
authors.initials: MM
authors.lastname: Akhavan
authors.affiliation: Department of Biochemistry, School of Medicine, Semnan University of Medical Sciences, Semnan, Iran.
authors.forename: Ahmad Reza
authors.initials: AR
authors.lastname: Bandegi
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D000975:Antioxidants / Q000378:metabolism; D001522:Behavior, Animal / Q000187:drug effects; D001929:Brain Edema / Q000188:drug therapy* / Q000209:etiology / Q000378:metabolism; D002540:Cerebral Cortex / Q000098:blood supply / Q000187:drug effects* / Q000473:pathology; D004195:Disease Models, Animal; D020244:Infarction, Middle Cerebral Artery / Q000150:complications; D017078:Laser-Doppler Flowmetry; D027523:Lavandula; D008297:Male; D018696:Neuroprotective Agents / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D009822:Oils, Volatile / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D010938:Plant Oils / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D051381:Rats; D017208:Rats, Wistar; D020521:Stroke / Q000188:drug therapy* / Q000209:etiology; D042461:Vascular Endothelial Growth Factor A / Q000378:metabolism; D051028:bcl-2-Associated X Protein / Q000378:metabolism
chemical_list: D000975:Antioxidants; C494828:Bax protein, rat; D018696:Neuroprotective Agents; D009822:Oils, Volatile; D010938:Plant Oils; D042461:Vascular Endothelial Growth Factor A; D051028:bcl-2-Associated X Protein; C467498:vascular endothelial growth factor A, rat; C045718:lavender oil
keywords: Antioxidant; Apoptosis; Bcl-2 and Bax; Brain edema; Focal cerebral ischemia; Lavender oil; Oxidative stress; Rat; VEGF