Abstract
ObjectiveTo investigate the effects of postconditioning ischemia on the expressions of the hippocampus neuron autophagy-related proteins LC3-II and Beclin-1 in rats following cerebral ischemia reperfusion.MethodsA total of 128 male Sprague–Dawley rats were randomly divided into 4 groups: control, cerebral ischemia-reperfusion (IR), cerebral ischemia post-conditioning group (IP), and PI3K/Akt inhibitor (LY294002). The rat cerebral ischemia model was established by the improved Pulsinelli four vessel occlusion method. The durations across the platform and escape latent period were recorded using the water maze experiment. The changes in cell morphology and the number of surviving hippocampal neurons were detected by hematoxylin-eosin (HE) staining. The cells with Beclin-1 and LC3-II in the hippocampal region were detected by immunohistochemical staining and Western blotting.ResultsWhen compared with the IR at 48 and 72 h, the number of platform passes increased and the escape latency time was shortened. Consequently, the HE staining detected positive cells with LC3-II and Beclin-1 increased in number at each time point in immunohistochemistry and the expressions of the LC3-II and Beclin-1 proteins were improved in the IP (P < 0.05).ConclusionsCerebral ischemic post-conditioning promoted the expressions of autophagy-related proteins LC3-II and Beclin-1 while relieving the injuries caused by cerebral ischemia reperfusion.
Highlights
The HE staining detected positive cells with LC3-II and Beclin-1 increased in number at each time point in immunohistochemistry and the expressions of the LC3-II and Beclin-1 proteins were improved in the ischemia post-conditioning group (IP) (P < 0.05)
The determination of the results was as follows: LC3-II and Beclin-1 proteins were expressed in the cytoplasm as brown staining with blue nucleus; four slices were selected from each animal; in a high-power magnification (10 × 40), five fields were observed in each slice; a grid eyepiece test system was employed; the positive cells were counted as those with brown granules and a nucleus; and the average value was used for the statistical analysis
The frequency of the platform crossings in the cerebral ischemia group was found to be reduced in the water maze, and the escape latency times were prolonged when compared with the control operational group (P < 0.05)
Summary
A total of 128 healthy male Sprague–Dawley (SD) rats weighing between 300 and 350 g were provided by the Medical Laboratory Animal Center of the North China University of Science and Technology; the SCXK (Beijing) number was 2009-003.
Sign-in/Register to view highlights & summary Sign-in/Register to access full text options 
Free) 
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a call
