Effects of single low dose propofol with limb ischemia postconditioning on cerebral ischemia/reperfusion injury in rats

Aim:To investigate the effects of single low dose propofol with limb ischemia postconditioning(LIPC) on cerebral ischemia/reperfusion injury in rats.Methods:A total of 100 male SD rats were randomly allocated into five groups:sham group,model group,propofol group,LIPC group and combined treatment group(propofol plus LIPC),20 in each group.The focal cerebral ischemia/reperfusion rat model was set up by using the middle cerebral artery occlusion method.The neurological deficit score,infarct size,malondialdehyde(MDA) content,superoxide dismutase(SOD) and glutathione peroxidase(GSH-Px) activities,interleukin-6(IL-6) and tumor necrosis factor-α(TNF-α) levels were detected.Results:There were significant differences in the above parameters among the 5 groups(P0.001);low dose propofol and LIPC both could improve neurological deficit symptoms,reduce infarct size,decrease IL-6,TNF-α level and MDA content,inhibit the decrease of SOD and GSH-Px activities in cerebral ischemia/reperfusion rats,while the effect of propofol with LIPC combinated treatment was more obvious(P0.05).Conclusion:Low dose propofol with LIPC is able to reduce cerebral ischemia/reperfusion injury by inhibiting oxidative stress and inflammation reaction,and combined treatment displays synergistic effect.