Objectives:
Normobaric oxygenation (NBO) has been shown to provide neuroprotection
in vivo
and
in vitro
. Yet, a recent Phase 2 clinical trial investigating NBO therapy in acute ischemic stroke was terminated due to questionable therapeutic benefit. NBO therapy alone may be insufficient to produce improved outcomes. In our recent study, we demonstrated a strong neuroprotective effect of ethanol at a dose of 1.5 g/kg (equivalent to the human legal driving limit). In this study, we sought to identify whether low-dose ethanol administration enhances the neuroprotection offered by NBO and whether combined administration of NBO with ethanol is associated with reduced apoptosis.
Methods:
Sprague-Dawley rats were subjected to right middle cerebral artery occlusion (MCAO) for 2 h, followed by reperfusion. Ischemic animals received either an intraperitoneal injection of 1.0 g/kg ethanol, 2 h of 100% NBO, or both ethanol and NBO. The Cell Death Detection ELISA Assay (Roche) was performed to determine apoptotic cell death at 24 h after reperfusion. Levels of pro-apoptotic (Caspase-3, Bcl-2-associated X-BAX, and Apoptosis-Inducing Factor-AIF) and anti-apoptotic proteins (Bcl-2 and Bcl-xL) were determined by Western blot analysis at 3 and 24 h after reperfusion.
Results:
As expected, untreated ischemic rats had the highest apoptotic cell death. Combined NBO/ethanol therapy decreased cell death by 48%, as compared to 29% with ethanol and 22% with NBO. Similarly, combined NBO/ethanol therapy promoted the greatest expression of anti-apoptotic factors and the lowest expression of pro-apoptotic proteins at 3 h after reperfusion. This effect was maintained at 24 h and even more pronounced for AIF and Caspase-3.
Conclusions:
Given singularly, NBO and ethanol improved the degree of cell death, decreased the expression of pro-apoptotic proteins, and increased the expression of anti-apoptotic proteins. Yet, when administered together, their effects largely compounded. These results suggest a synergistic neuroprotection offered by NBO with ethanol, which may be attributed at least in part to their shared role in modulating neuronal apoptosis.
Neuroprotective Effect of Resveratrol Against Methamphetamine-Induced Dopaminergic Apoptotic Cell Death in a Cell Culture Model of Neurotoxicity
