title: Neuroprotective effect of Shenqi Fuzheng injection pretreatment in aged rats with cerebral ischemia/reperfusion injury.
abstract: Shenqi Fuzheng injection is extracted from the Chinese herbs Radix Astragali and Radix Codonopsis. The aim of the present study was to investigate the neuroprotective effects of Shenqi Fuzheng injection in cerebral ischemia and reperfusion. Aged rats (20-22 months) were divided into three groups: sham, model, and treatment. Shenqi Fuzheng injection or saline (40 mL/kg) was injected into the tail vein daily for 1 week, after which a cerebral ischemia/reperfusion injury model was established. Compared with model rats that received saline, rats in the treatment group had smaller infarct volumes, lower brain water and malondialdehyde content, lower brain Ca(2+) levels, lower activities of serum lactate dehydrogenase and creatine kinase, and higher superoxide dismutase activity. In addition, the treatment group showed less damage to the brain tissue ultrastructure and better neurological function. Our findings indicate that Shenqi Fuzheng injection exerts neuroprotective effects in aged rats with cerebral ischemia/reperfusion injury, and that the underlying mechanism relies on oxygen free radical scavenging and inhibition of brain Ca(2+) accumulation.
authors.affiliation: Department of Anesthesiology, Second Affiliated Hospital of Xi'an Jiaotong University, Xi'an, Shaanxi Province, China.
authors.forename: Ying-Min
authors.initials: YM
authors.lastname: Cai
authors.affiliation: Department of Anesthesiology, Second Affiliated Hospital of Xi'an Jiaotong University, Xi'an, Shaanxi Province, China.
authors.forename: Yong
authors.identifier: 0000-0002-7120-3070
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Zhang
authors.affiliation: Department of Anesthesiology, Second Affiliated Hospital of Xi'an Jiaotong University, Xi'an, Shaanxi Province, China.
authors.forename: Peng-Bo
authors.initials: PB
authors.lastname: Zhang
authors.affiliation: Department of Anesthesiology, Second Affiliated Hospital of Xi'an Jiaotong University, Xi'an, Shaanxi Province, China.
authors.forename: Lu-Ming
authors.initials: LM
authors.lastname: Zhen
authors.affiliation: Department of Anesthesiology, Second Affiliated Hospital of Xi'an Jiaotong University, Xi'an, Shaanxi Province, China.
authors.forename: Xiao-Ju
authors.initials: XJ
authors.lastname: Sun
authors.affiliation: Department of Anesthesiology, Second Affiliated Hospital of Xi'an Jiaotong University, Xi'an, Shaanxi Province, China.
authors.forename: Zhi-Ling
authors.initials: ZL
authors.lastname: Wang
authors.affiliation: Department of Anesthesiology, Second Affiliated Hospital of Xi'an Jiaotong University, Xi'an, Shaanxi Province, China.
authors.forename: Ren-Yan
authors.initials: RY
authors.lastname: Xu
authors.affiliation: Department of Anesthesiology, Second Affiliated Hospital of Xi'an Jiaotong University, Xi'an, Shaanxi Province, China.
authors.forename: Rong-Liang
authors.initials: RL
authors.lastname: Xue
keywords: Ca2+; NSFC grant; Shenqi Fuzheng injection; aged rats; cerebral ischemia/reperfusion; nerve regeneration; neural regeneration; neurological function; oxygen free radicals