ABSTRACT
Aim To determine whether pranlukast (ONO-1078), a cysteinyl leukotriene receptor antagonist, possesses therapeutic effect when administered after focal cerebral ischemia in mice. Methods Persistent focal cerebral ischemia was induced by middle cerebral artery occlusion. Pranlukast and edaravone, a positive control drug, were ip injected 1, 6 and 24 h after ischemia. The neurological deficits were evaluated by neurological scores and inclined plane test 24 and 48 h after the surgery. Forty-eight h later, the brain slices were prepared for measurements of infarct volume and the ratio of ischemic/non-ischemic hemispheres. Brain sections were cut and examined for neuron densities in different regions of the brain. The effects of pranlukast and edaravone were evaluated by the changes of these variables. Results Pranlukast (0.1 and 0.2 mg?kg -1) and edaravone (3 and 10 mg?kg -1) significantly reduced the neurological deficits, infarct volume (maximally 82.3%), ratio of ischemic/non-ischemic hemispheres, and attenuated the reduction of neuron densities in hippocampal CA1 region, cortex and striatum. Conclusion Pranlukast possesses therapeutic effect on ischemic insults when administered after ischemia as effective as edravone, indicating a therapeutic potential in the treatment of ischemic stroke.