RESUMEN
Aim To investigate the effect of Trillium tschonoskii Maxim ( TTM ) ethanol extract on hypoxia ischemia brain damage ( HIBD ) in neonatal rats and potential mechanisms. Methods Fifty healthy SD rats of 7 day-old were randomly divided into three groups:the sham operation group ( n=10 ) , the model group ( n=20 ) and TTM treatment group ( n=20 ) , which received 3-day intraperitoneal injection of normal saline or ethanol extract of TTM respectively. TTC staining and Nissl staining were performed to detect the cerebral ischemia area and neuronal death. Western blot was used to detect the expression of Bcl-2 and Bax. Re-sults The brain tissue of model group was slightly swollen, and white necrotic zone induced by ischemia occured on the right side of the brain, while the brain morphology of TTM treatment group was good. After TTC staining, ischemia zone was clearly seen on the right side of the brain in model group, while after TTM treatment, the size of ischemic zone was decreased. Compared with the model group , Nissl staining showed the neuronal cells increased in TTM treatment group. Western blot showed the expression of Bcl-2 protein in TTM group increased than that in HIBD model group ( P <0. 01 ) , while the expression of Bax protein de-creased ( P <0. 01 ) . Conclusion TTM therapy is beneficial for HIBD,which may be related to reducing neuronal apoptosis.