The protective effects of daurisoline on cerebral ischemia in mice and rats

AIM To investigate the protective effects of daurisoline on anoxia and acute cerebral ischemia in mice and focal cerebral ischemia in rats. METHODS Anoxia was produced by close normobaric hypoxia; acute cerebral ischemia was produced by the occlusion of bilateral carotid arteries of mice; focal cerebral ischemia was produced by permanent occlusion of the proximal of the left middle cerebral artery (MCA). The infarct area was measured by 2, 3, 5triphenyltetrazolium chloride (TTC) staining technique. The extent of neurological deficits was evaluated by the method of Bederson. RESULTS Daurisoline (25, 5 and 10 mg·kg-1, iv) significantly prolonged the survival time from (156±24) minutes in control to (184±23), (246±19) and (257±21) minutes in daurisoline treated groups) of mice subjected to oxygen deprivation and decreased the death rate (from 769% in control to 273%, 10% and 0% in daurisoline treated groups of mice subjected to acute cerebral ischemia by occlusion of bilateral carotid arteries. Daurisoline (5, 10 mg·kg-1, iv) also markedly decreased the infarct size (from 245%±32% in control to 165%±20% and 149%±41% in daurisoline treated groups) and ameliorated neurologic deficits score (from 78±09 in control to 57±076 and 42±056 in daurisoline treated groups 4 h after cerebral ischemia and from 71±078 in control to 54±084 and 38±054 in daurisoline treated groups 24 h after cerebral ischemia) of rats subjected to focal cerebral ischemia by occlusion of the middle cerebral artery with electric coagulation. CONCLUSION Daurisoline has protective effects on anoxia and cerebral ischemia.