Pretreatment with Rhodiola rosea extract reduces cognitive impairment induced by intracerebroventricular streptozotocin in rats: implication of anti-oxidative and neuroprotective effects / 生物医学与环境科学（英文）

<p><b>OBJECTIVE</b>To investigate the pretreatment effects of Rhodiola rosea (R. rosea) extract on cognitive dysfunction, oxidative stress in hippocampus and hippocampal neuron injury in a rat model of Alzheimer's disease (AD).</p><p><b>METHODS</b>Male Sprague-Dawley rats were pretreated with R. rosea extract at doses of 1.5, 3.0, and 6.0 g/kg for 3 weeks, followed by bilateral intracerebroventricular injection with streptozotocin (1.5 mg/kg) on days 1 and 3. Behavioral alterations were monitored after 2 weeks from the lesion using Morris water maze task. Three weeks after the lesion, the rats were sacrificed for measuring the malondialdehyde (MDA), glutathione reductase (GR) and reduced glutathione (GSH) levels in hippocampus and histopathology of hippocampal neurons.</p><p><b>RESULTS</b>The MDA level was significantly increased while the GR and GSH levels were significantly decreased with striking impairments in spatial learning and memory and severe damage to hippocampal neurons in the model rat induced by intracerebroventricular injection of streptozotocin. These abnormalities were significantly improved by pretreatment with R. rosea extract (3.0 g/kg).</p><p><b>CONCLUSION</b>R. rosea extract can protect rats against cognitive deficits, neuronal injury and oxidative stress induced by intracerebroventricular injection of streptozotocin, and may be used as a potential agent in treatment of neurodegenerative diseases such as AD.</p>

Effects of the Panax notoginseng saponins on the level of synaptophysin protein in brain in rat model with lesion of Meynert / 中国中药杂志

<p><b>OBJECTIVE</b>To observe the protective effect of Panax notoginseng saponins (PNS) on the level of synaptophysin ptotein in brain in rat model with Alzheimer's disease (AD).</p><p><b>METHOD</b>The AD rat models were established by intra-peritoneal injection of D-galactose combined with excitatory neurotoxin ibotenic acid injection into bilateral nbM. The activity and content of synaptophysin protein in brain were determined by immunohistochemistry analysis.</p><p><b>RESULT</b>PNS could reduce the lesion of level of synaptophysin protein in brain, as compared with those of model group's rats.</p><p><b>CONCLUSION</b>PNS plays a protective role by reducing down of the level of synaptophysin protein in brain in lesion of AD animal model.</p>