Astaxanthin ameliorates early brain injury after experimental subarachnoid hemorrhage in rats

Abstract

Objective To study the effects of astaxanthin (ATX) on the early brain injury (EBI) after experimental subarachnoid hemorrhage (SAH) in rats.Methods A total of 72 male SD rats were randomly divided into three groups:sham group,SAH + vehicle group and SAH + ATX group.The prechiasmatic cistern SAH rat model was established in this experiment.Brain edema and Evans blue extravasation were measured at 24 h after surgery.The levels of Caspase-3,apoptotic index and malondialdehyde (MDA),glutathione (GSH),and superoxide dismutase (SOD) in the brain cortex were evaluated by Western blotting,terminal deoxynucleotidyl transferase-mediated dUTP nick-end labeling (TUNEL) staining,and spectrophotometric method,respectively.Results The brain edema [(80.76 ± 0.67) ％] and blood-brain barrier permeability [(2.17 ±0.53) μg/g] were significantly aggravated at 24 h after SAH.In addition,the levels of Caspase-3 expression [(0.49 ± 0.13)] and neural cell apoptosis [(41.54 ±9.38) ％] were increased in the inferior basal temporal lobe followomh SAH.After ATX administration,the brain edema [(79.91 ± 0.42) ％],BBB disruption [(1.35 ± 0.46) μg/g],Caspase-3 levels [(0.34 ± 0.06)] and neural cell apoptosis [(27.86 ± 5.17) ％] were ameliorated after SAH.Meanwhile,ATX could attenuate the oxidative stress injury [(MDA:2.52 ± 0.60,4.44 ± 1.32 and 2.64 ±0.78); (GSH:6.50±1.80,3.72±1.12 and 6.23 ±0.87); (SOD:25.71 ±4.00,14.71 ±2.35 and 21.61 ± 3.87)] in brain cortex after SAH.Conclusion ATX could alleviate EBI after SAH by its powerful anti-oxidant property. Key words: Subarachnoid hemorrhage; Early brain injury; Astaxanthin; Oxidative stress injury