Cerebral ischemia-reperfusion injury(CIRI) is an important factor hindering the recovery of ischemic stroke patients after blood flow recanalization. Mitochondria, serving as the "energy chamber" of cells, have multiple important physiological functions, such as supplying energy, metabolizing reactive oxygen species, storing calcium, and mediating programmed cell death. During CIRI, oxidative stress, calcium overload, inflammatory response, and other factors can easily lead to neuronal mitochondrial dyshomeostasis, which is the key pathological link leading to secondary injury. As reported, the mitochondrial quality control(MQC) system, mainly including mitochondrial biosynthesis, kinetics, autophagy, and derived vesicles, is an important endogenous mechanism to maintain mitochondrial homeostasis and plays an important protective role in the damage of mitochondrial structure and function caused by CIRI. This paper reviewed the mechanism of MQC and the research progress on MQC-targeting therapy of CIRI in recent 10 years to provide theoretical references for exploring new strategies for the prevention and treatment of ischemic stroke with traditional Chinese medicine.
Brain Ischemia/prevention & control* ; Calcium/metabolism* ; Humans ; Ischemic Stroke ; Mitochondria/pathology* ; Reactive Oxygen Species/metabolism* ; Reperfusion Injury/prevention & control*

The neuroprotective effects of escitalopram oxalate in rats with chronic hypoperfusion and the possible mechanism were explored. Chronic hypoperfusion (2-VO) model was prepared and given escitalopram oxalate (experimental group) or PBS (control group) after 6 weeks. Eight weeks after the operation, Morris water maze test was carried out to evaluate the learning and memory ability of the rats. The cell proliferation, three-dimensional vascular distribution, cell morphological changes in ischemic area and the plasma vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) were detected to explore the possible mechanisms. (1) Morris water maze test showed that the escape latency in the experimental group was significantly shorter than in the control group, while the first quadrant swimming time in the experimental group was significantly longer than the control group (both P<0.01). (2) Cerebrovascular confocal detection results showed that the inside diameter of capillaries was significantly less in the experimental group than in the control group; the vascular density was significantly increased in the experimental group and the total area of capillaries was also significantly increased in the experimental group as compared with the control group. (3) There was statistically significant difference in BrdU-positive cells in the ischemic brain tissue between the experimental group and the control group (P=0.003<0.01). (4) VEGF concentrations in the plasma and the ischemic area were higher in the experimental group than in the control group (P<0.05). It was concluded that escitalopram oxalate could significantly improve the learning and memory ability of the rats with chronic cerebral ischemia probably by the VEGF-mediated angiogenesis.
Animals ; Citalopram ; administration & dosage ; pharmacology ; Disease Models, Animal ; Hypoxia-Ischemia, Brain ; blood ; pathology ; prevention & control ; Male ; Maze Learning ; drug effects ; Memory ; drug effects ; Neuroprotective Agents ; administration & dosage ; pharmacology ; Rats ; Rats, Sprague-Dawley ; Vascular Endothelial Growth Factor A ; blood ; metabolism

OBJECTIVETo observe the effect of Schisandra chinensis lignans (SCL) on neuronal apoptosis and PI3K/AKT signaling pathway of rats in the cerebral ischemia injury model, and study its possible mechanism.

METHODRats were orally administered SCL high, middle and low dose groups (100, 50, 25 mg x kg(-1)) for 14 days. The cerebral ischemia injury model was established by using the suture-occluded method to rate the neurological functions. The cerebral infarction area was observed by TTC staining. The pathological changes in brain tissues were determined by HE staining. Bcl-2 and Bax expressions were detected by immunohistochemical assay. The protein expressions of p-AKT and AKT were assayed by Western blotting.

RESULTCompared with the model group, SCL high, middle and low dose groups showed reduction in the cerebral infarction area to varying degrees, improve the pathological changes in brain tissues, promote the expression of apoptin Bcl-2 and p-AKT, and inhibit the expression of apoptin Bax.

CONCLUSIONSCL shows a protective effect on rats with cerebral ischemia injury. Its mechanism may be related to the increase in p-AKT ability and antiischemic brain injury capacity and the inhibition of nerve cells.

Administration, Oral ; Animals ; Apoptosis ; drug effects ; Blotting, Western ; Brain Ischemia ; metabolism ; pathology ; prevention & control ; Disease Models, Animal ; Dose-Response Relationship, Drug ; Immunohistochemistry ; Lignans ; administration & dosage ; pharmacology ; Male ; Neurons ; drug effects ; metabolism ; pathology ; Phosphatidylinositol 3-Kinases ; metabolism ; Phosphorylation ; Phytotherapy ; Proto-Oncogene Proteins c-akt ; metabolism ; Proto-Oncogene Proteins c-bcl-2 ; metabolism ; Rats ; Rats, Sprague-Dawley ; Schisandra ; chemistry ; Signal Transduction ; drug effects ; bcl-2-Associated X Protein ; metabolism

OBJECTIVETo investigate the effects of caffeic acid ester fraction (Caf) from Erigeron breviscapus, mainly composed of dicaffeoylquinic acids (diCQAs), on microglial activation in vitro and focal cerebral ischemia in vivo.

METHODSThe production of nitric oxide (NO), tumor necrosis factor α (TNF-α), and interleukin-1β (IL-1β) induced by lipopolysaccharide (LPS) treatment in rat primary cultured microglia were measured by Griess reaction or enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay. Cell viability of cortical neurons was measured using AlamarBlue reagent. The behavioral tests and the infarct area of brain were used to evaluate the damage to central nervous system in rat middle cerebral artery occlusion (MCAO) model of cerebral ischemia. Real time polymerase chain reaction was used to determine the expression of inducible nitric oxide synthase (iNOS), TNF-α and IL-1β mRNA in ischemic cerebral tissues.

RESULTSCaf inhibited the production of NO, TNF-α and IL-1β induced by LPS treatment in primary microglia in a dose-dependent manner. Exposure of cortical neurons to conditioned medium from Caf-treated microglia increased neuronal cell viability (P<0.01) compared with conditioned medium from LPS-treated alone. In MCAO rat model of cerebral ischemia, Caf could significantly improve neurobehavioural performance and reduce percentage infarct volume compared with the vehicle group (P<0.05). Caf could also significantly inhibit the up-regulation of iNOS, TNF-α, and IL-1β gene expressions in ischemic cerebral tissues.

CONCLUSIONCaf could suppress microglial activation, which may be one mechanism of its neuroprotective effect against ischemia.

Animals ; Brain ; drug effects ; metabolism ; pathology ; Brain Ischemia ; complications ; drug therapy ; pathology ; prevention & control ; Caffeic Acids ; chemistry ; pharmacology ; Chemical Fractionation ; Chromatography, High Pressure Liquid ; Erigeron ; chemistry ; Gene Expression Regulation ; drug effects ; Infarction, Middle Cerebral Artery ; complications ; pathology ; Interleukin-1beta ; genetics ; metabolism ; Microglia ; drug effects ; metabolism ; pathology ; Neuroprotective Agents ; chemistry ; pharmacology ; therapeutic use ; Nitric Oxide Synthase Type II ; genetics ; metabolism ; Plant Extracts ; pharmacology ; Quinic Acid ; analogs & derivatives ; chemistry ; pharmacology ; therapeutic use ; RNA, Messenger ; genetics ; metabolism ; Rats ; Rats, Wistar ; Tumor Necrosis Factor-alpha ; genetics ; metabolism

OBJECTIVETo investigate the effect of aloe polysaccharides pretreatment on the cerebral inflammatory response and lipid peroxidation in severe hemorrhagic shock rats first entering high altitude.

METHODSForty healthy male SD rats weighing 250-300 g were randomly divided into 5 groups (n = 8 each): sham group, shock group, AP group was further divided into 3 subgroups (AP1 0.75 mg/kg; AP2 1.50 mg/kg; AP3 3.00 mg/kg). The different doses AP were given iv respectively at 30 min before hemorrhagic shock. The mean blood pressure (MAP) was maintained at (35 ± 5) mmHg (1 mmHg = 0.133 kPa) for 60 minutes. The animals were killed at 2 hours after resuscitation. Blood samples were obtained from femoral artery for detecting tumor necrosis factor α (TNF-α), IL-6 and IL-10 concentrations; the frontal and parietal lobes brain and the hippocampus were separated from brain tissues on the ice for detecting superoxide dismutase (SOD) activity and myeloperoxidase (MPO) activity, malondialdehyde (MDA) concentration, brain Wet-dry weight ratio (W/D).

RESULTSCompared with sham group, hemorrhagic shock significantly increased serum TNF-α ((76 ± 11) ng/L), IL-6 ((1303 ± 141) ng/L) and IL-10 concentrations ((95 ± 14) ng/L), MPO activity ((20.72 ± 2.28)×10(-2) U/g) and MDA concentration ((80 ± 13) nmol/mgprot) in the brain tissue and brain W/D (6.21 ± 0.18) (t = 6.928 - 14.565, P < 0.05), while SOD activity ((56 ± 11) U/mgprot) decreased significantly (t = -5.374, P < 0.05). There were no significant difference between shock and AP1 groups. AP2 group significantly inhibited hemorrhagic shock-induced increase serum TNF-α ((54 ± 12) ng/L), IL-6 ((846 ± 78) ng/L) and IL-10 concentrations ((66 ± 11) ng/L), MPO activity ((13.13 ± 1.23)×10(-2) U/g) and MDA concentration ((56 ± 9) nmol/mgprot) in the brain tissue and brain W/D (5.71 ± 0.18) (t = -6.905 - -3.357, P < 0.05), while SOD activity ((86 ± 12) U/mgprot) increased significantly compared to shock group (t = 4.240, P < 0.05). There were no significant difference between AP2 and AP3 groups.

CONCLUSIONAP pretreatment can attenuate the cerebral ischemia and reperfusion injury in severe traumatic-hemorrhagic rats first entering high altitude through inhibiting systemic inflammatory response and leukocyte aggregation and lipid peroxidation in the brain.

Aloe ; chemistry ; Altitude ; Animals ; Brain ; metabolism ; pathology ; Brain Ischemia ; drug therapy ; prevention & control ; Disease Models, Animal ; Interleukin-10 ; blood ; Interleukin-6 ; blood ; Lipid Peroxidation ; Male ; Malondialdehyde ; metabolism ; Polysaccharides ; pharmacology ; Rats ; Rats, Sprague-Dawley ; Reperfusion Injury ; drug therapy ; prevention & control ; Shock, Hemorrhagic ; metabolism ; pathology ; Superoxide Dismutase ; metabolism ; Tumor Necrosis Factor-alpha ; blood

Reactive oxygen species (ROS) contribute to the development of a number of neuronal diseases including ischemia. DJ-1, also known to PARK7, plays an important role in transcriptional regulation, acting as molecular chaperone and antioxidant. In the present study, we investigated whether DJ-1 protein shows a protective effect against oxidative stress-induced neuronal cell death in vitro and in ischemic animal models in vivo. To explore DJ-1 protein's potential role in protecting against ischemic cell death, we constructed cell permeable Tat-DJ-1 fusion proteins. Tat-DJ-1 protein efficiently transduced into neuronal cells in a dose- and time-dependent manner. Transduced Tat-DJ-1 protein increased cell survival against hydrogen peroxide (H2O2) toxicity and also reduced intracellular ROS. In addition, Tat-DJ-1 protein inhibited DNA fragmentation induced by H2O2. Furthermore, in animal models, immunohistochemical analysis revealed that Tat-DJ-1 protein prevented neuronal cell death induced by transient forebrain ischemia in the CA1 region of the hippocampus. These results demonstrate that transduced Tat-DJ-1 protein protects against cell death in vitro and in vivo, suggesting that the transduction of Tat-DJ-1 may be useful as a therapeutic agent for ischemic injuries related to oxidative stress.
Animals ; Blood-Brain Barrier/metabolism ; Brain Ischemia/*metabolism/pathology/prevention & control ; CA1 Region, Hippocampal/drug effects/metabolism/pathology ; Cell Line, Tumor ; Cell Survival/drug effects ; Gerbillinae ; Intracellular Signaling Peptides and Proteins/*administration & dosage/biosynthesis/pharmacokinetics ; Lipid Peroxidation ; Malondialdehyde/metabolism ; Mice ; Neuroprotective Agents/*administration & dosage/pharmacokinetics ; Oncogene Proteins/*administration & dosage/biosynthesis/pharmacokinetics ; *Oxidative Stress ; Prosencephalon/drug effects/metabolism/pathology ; Rats ; Recombinant Fusion Proteins/*administration & dosage/biosynthesis/pharmacokinetics ; tat Gene Products, Human Immunodeficiency Virus/*administration & dosage/biosynthesis/pharmacokinetics

OBJECTIVETo observe the protective effect of Breviscapine injection on the hypoxic ischemic brain damage of neonatal rats, and the expression of Bcl-2 and Bax.

METHODSIn this experiment 7-day-old newborn rat with hypoxic-ischemic brain damage model was used and divided into four groups: sham group, model group, control with sterile water for injection group and Breviscapine injection group. Breviscapine injection group was divided into large, medium, and small doses. Used thionin staining and immunohistochemical staining to assay the neuronal density, histological grade, and the expresssion of Bcl-2 and Bax protein in the CA1 hippocampus of each group , the number of positive cells and the integral optical density (IOD) of the immunostaining on Bcl-2, Bax protein expression in the CA1 hippocampus.

RESULTSSham group, there was no significant neuronal damage and no obvious positive cells of Bcl-2 and Bax in the CA1 hippocampus. In model group and control with sterile water for injection group, the level of Bcl-2, Bax expression peaked at 3 d after hypoxic-ischemic brain damage (HIBD) (P < 0.05 vs other groups), the value of neuronal density (ND) was decreased, and histological grade (HG) was increased compared with that in the sham group (P < 0.05). Breviscapine injection group, compared with control with sterile water for injection group, the expression of Bcl-2 protein was further increased, IOD value increased, while the expression of Bax protein was decreased, IOD value decreased, the value of ND increased, and HG decreased.

CONCLUSIONBreviscapin injection maybe reduce the delayed neuronal death, and reduce the apoptosis of neuron after severe brain injury through improving the expression of Bcl-2 protein and inhibiting expression of Bax. The study would provide a fine theoretical foundation for clinical therapy of neonatal HIBD.

Animals ; Animals, Newborn ; Apoptosis ; drug effects ; Drugs, Chinese Herbal ; pharmacology ; Female ; Flavonoids ; chemistry ; Hypoxia-Ischemia, Brain ; metabolism ; pathology ; prevention & control ; Male ; Proto-Oncogene Proteins c-bcl-2 ; metabolism ; Rats ; Rats, Sprague-Dawley ; bcl-2-Associated X Protein ; metabolism

Animals ; Apoptosis ; physiology ; Brain Ischemia ; enzymology ; physiopathology ; Caspase 3 ; metabolism ; Ischemic Postconditioning ; methods ; Male ; Rats ; Rats, Sprague-Dawley ; Reperfusion Injury ; enzymology ; pathology ; prevention & control

OBJECTIVETo investigate the effect of Bcl-2 overexpression on Fas and TNFR1-mediated apoptosis and its possible mechanism in rat hippocampus following global ischemia/reperfusion (IR).

METHODSNinety healthy male SD rats were randomly divided into sham operated group, IR group and Bcl-2 overexpression group (BT group). Rat model of global IR was established by the 4-V0 method. The expressions of Bcl-2, Fas and TNFR1 and the cell apoptosis in the CA1 and CA3 regions were examined by HE staining, immunohistochemistry and TUNEL method.

RESULTSIn IR group, the neurons in the CA1 region showed an obvious reduction in number with disordered arrangement and interstitial edema 48 h after global IR. Such changes were not obvious in BT group. Immunohistochemistry showed that Fas expression in the CA1 region reached the peak level at 6 h in IR group with a greater expression intensity than that in BT group (P<0.05). TNFR1 was expressed at a higher level in IR group than in BT group (P<0.05), reaching the peak level at 24 h. In the sham group, the expression of Fas and TNFR1 was not detected the in CA1 and CA3 regions. Global IR caused increased cell apoptosis in the CA1 and CA3 regions, starting at 6 h and reached peak at 24 to 48 h. The cell apoptosis was less obvious in BT group (P<0.05).

CONCLUSIONFas and TNFR1 are expressed in the CA1 and CA3 regions after global IR in rats, suggesting the involvement of death receptor in cerebral IR injury. Bcl-2 overexpression decreases the expression of Fas and TNFR1 and cell apoptosis after global IR, thus offering protective effect against cerebral IR injury.

Animals ; Apoptosis ; Brain Ischemia ; metabolism ; physiopathology ; Hippocampus ; metabolism ; pathology ; Male ; Proto-Oncogene Proteins c-bcl-2 ; metabolism ; Rats ; Rats, Sprague-Dawley ; Receptors, Tumor Necrosis Factor, Type I ; metabolism ; Reperfusion Injury ; metabolism ; pathology ; prevention & control ; fas Receptor ; metabolism

Animals ; Brain Edema ; prevention & control ; Brain Ischemia ; physiopathology ; Erythropoietin ; pharmacology ; Female ; Hippocampus ; metabolism ; pathology ; Male ; Nitric Oxide ; metabolism ; Protective Agents ; pharmacology ; Rats ; Rats, Sprague-Dawley ; Reperfusion Injury ; prevention & control ; Superoxide Dismutase ; metabolism