title: Role of Antioxidants in Neonatal Hypoxic-Ischemic Brain Injury: New Therapeutic Approaches.
abstract: Hypoxic-ischemic brain damage is an alarming health and economic problem in spite of the advances in neonatal care. It can cause mortality or detrimental neurological disorders such as cerebral palsy, motor impairment and cognitive deficits in neonates. When hypoxia-ischemia occurs, a multi-faceted cascade of events starts out, which can eventually cause cell death. Lower levels of oxygen due to reduced blood supply increase the production of reactive oxygen species, which leads to oxidative stress, a higher concentration of free cytosolic calcium and impaired mitochondrial function, triggering the activation of apoptotic pathways, DNA fragmentation and cell death. The high incidence of this type of lesion in newborns can be partly attributed to the fact that the developing brain is particularly vulnerable to oxidative stress. Since antioxidants can safely interact with free radicals and terminate that chain reaction before vital molecules are damaged, exogenous antioxidant therapy may have the potential to diminish cellular damage caused by hypoxia-ischemia. In this review, we focus on the neuroprotective effects of antioxidant treatments against perinatal hypoxic-ischemic brain injury, in the light of the most recent advances.
authors.affiliation: Department of Cell Biology & Histology, School of Medicine and Nursing, University of the Basque Country (UPV/EHU), 48940 Leioa, Spain. olatz.arteaga@ehu.eus.
authors.forename: Olatz
authors.initials: O
authors.lastname: Arteaga
authors.affiliation: Department of Cell Biology & Histology, School of Medicine and Nursing, University of the Basque Country (UPV/EHU), 48940 Leioa, Spain. antoniaangeles.alvarez@ehu.eus.
authors.forename: Antonia
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Álvarez
authors.affiliation: Department of Cell Biology & Histology, School of Medicine and Nursing, University of the Basque Country (UPV/EHU), 48940 Leioa, Spain. mrevuelta006@gmail.com.
authors.forename: Miren
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Revuelta
authors.affiliation: Department of Otorhinolaryngology, Basurto University Hospital, School of Medicine and Nursing, University of the Basque Country (UPV/EHU), 48940 Leioa, Spain. francisco.santaolalla@ehu.eus.
authors.forename: Francisco
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Santaolalla
authors.affiliation: Department of Neuroscience, School of Medicine and Nursing, University of the Basque Country (UPV/EHU), 48940 Leioa, Spain. andoni.urtasun@ehu.eus.|Neurogenomiks Laboratory, Achucarro Basque Center for Neuroscience, Bizkaia Science and Technology Park, 48170 Zamudio, Spain. andoni.urtasun@ehu.eus.
authors.forename: Andoni
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Urtasun
authors.affiliation: Department of Cell Biology & Histology, School of Medicine and Nursing, University of the Basque Country (UPV/EHU), 48940 Leioa, Spain. enrique.hilario@ehu.eus.
authors.forename: Enrique
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Hilario
mesh_terms: D000975:Antioxidants / Q000494:pharmacology / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D006801:Humans; D020925:Hypoxia-Ischemia, Brain / Q000188:drug therapy* / Q000473:pathology; D007231:Infant, Newborn; D018384:Oxidative Stress / Q000187:drug effects
chemical_list: D000975:Antioxidants
keywords: antioxidant; brain; hypoxia–ischemia; neuroprotection; newborn