Effect of quercetin on neural stem cell proliferation in the subventricular zone of rats after focal cerebral ischemia-reperfusion injury / 南方医科大学学报

ABSTRACT

<p><b>OBJECTIVE</b>To study the effect of quercetin on the proliferation of neural stem cells in the subventricular zone (SVZ) of rats after focal cerebral ischemia.</p><p><b>METHODS</b>An adult rat model of middle cerebral artery occlusion (MCAO) model was established by placement of an intraluminal filament at the origin of the MCA. Quercetin was administered intraperitoneally in the rats at a dose of 50 mg/kg every 3 days starting at 6 h after MCAO, and BrdU (50 mg/kg daily) was also injected intraperitoneally starting at 4 h after MCAO. BrdU-positive cells in the SVZ were counted at 7, 14 and 21 days after MCAO.</p><p><b>RESULTS</b>Compared with the sham-operated group, the rats in the ischemic model group showed significantly increased BrdU-positive cells in the ipsilateral SVZ 7 days after MCAO, reaching the peak level on day 14 and beginning to decrease on day 21 (P<0.05). The number of ipsilateral BrdU-positive cells in quercetin group was significantly greater than that in the model group on days 7, 14 and 21 (P<0.05), and maintained the high level on day 21.</p><p><b>CONCLUSION</b>Quercetin can maintain a high level of neural stem cell proliferation in the SVZ after focal cerebral ischemia in adult rats.</p>