Shikonin protects mouse brain against cerebral ischemia/reperfusion injury through its antioxidant activity.
The aim of our study was to investigate neuroprotective properties of shikonin, a naphthoquinone pigment isolated from the roots of the traditional Chinese herb Lithospermum erythrorhizon. In the present study, mice were divided randomly into sham, model, shikonin and edaravone-treated groups. Shikonin (50, 25, 12.5 mg/kg, i.g.) or maize oil was administered three times before ischemia and once at 2 h after the onset of ischemia. Mice were anesthetized with chloral hydrate and subjected to middle cerebral artery 2 h of occlusion and then 22 h of reperfusion. Different antioxidant assays were employed in order to evaluate the antioxidant activities of shikonin in vitro. Neurological deficit, infarct size, histopathology changes and oxidative stress markers were evaluated after 22 h of reperfusion. In comparison with model group, treatment with shikonin significantly decreased neurological deficit scores, infarct size, the levels of malondialdehyde(MDA), carbonyl and reactive oxygen species, and attenuated neuronal damage, up-regulated superoxide dismutase(SOD), catalase, glutathione peroxidase(GSH-Px) activities and reduced glutathione(GSH)/ glutathione disulfide (GSSG) ratio. Taken together, these results suggested that neuroprotective effects of shikonin against cerebral ischemia/reperfusion injury maybe attributed to its antioxidant effects. Copyright © 2010 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.
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