Rasagiline is neuroprotective in an experimental model of brain ischemia in the rat

Z. Speiser*, A. Mayk, L. Litinetsky, T. Fine, A. Nyska, E. Blaugrund, S. Cohen

*Corresponding author for this work

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

18 Scopus citations

Abstract

The neuroprotective effects of intravenous rasagiline were investigated in a rat model of stroke. Middle cerebral artery (MCA) occlusion was performed in male rats and the short- (neurological severity score [NSS], infarct size), intermediate- (cognition) and long-term (necrotic area) effects were assessed. A bolus (3 mg/kg) of rasagiline followed by a 3-h infusion (3 mg/kg/h), initiated immediately after MCA occlusion, reduced infarct size by 48.6% and NSS by 32.7% relative to saline treatment. Cognitive function, tested in a water maze 2-3 weeks after occlusion, also significantly improved compared with saline-treated controls. Necrotic brain area was 35-50% smaller with rasagiline than with saline following a single bolus dose. The single bolus rasagiline dose was as effective as a rasagiline bolus followed by rasagiline infusion in short-term outcomes. The neuroprotective effect of rasagiline was fully reproducible when administered at 2 h following occlusion but not after 4 h.

Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)595-605
Number of pages11
JournalJournal of Neural Transmission
Volume114
Issue number5
DOIs
StatePublished - May 2007

Keywords

  • Cognition
  • Histopathological outcome
  • Infarct volume
  • Middle cerebral artery occlusion
  • Neurological severity score

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