Porcine Brain Extract Attenuates Memory Impairments Induced by Focal Cerebral Ischemia

Problem statement: Stroke or cerebral ischemia has been recognized as one important problem worldwide. To date, the effectiveness of protective and therapeutic strategies against stroke is still very limited. Therefore, the development of novel strategy is required. Porcine brain is traditional believed to improve brain functions. Recent studies showed that the extract of porcine brain could protect against brain damage related to the oxidative stress, therefore, we hypothesized that it could protect against brain damage in stroke. Approach: To test the potential of porcine brain extract as the novel protective supplement against stroke, various doses of porcine brain extract at doses of 0.5 and 2.5 mg kg b.w. were orally given to male Wistar rats, weighing 300-350 g, at the period of 14 days before and 21 days after the occlusion of right middle cerebral artery. Then, all rats were determined the neurological score, motor performance, cognitive function and brain infarct volume. Moreover, the possible neuroprotective mechanisms of the extract were also determined via the alteration of Malondialdehyde (MDA) or lipid peroxidation product and via the activities of scavenger enzymes including Superoxide Dismutase (SOD), Catalase (CAT) and Glutathione Peroxides (GPx). Results: The results showed that the low dose of porcine extract decreased the infarct volume and improved brain functions including neurological score, motor performance and memory deficit. In addition, it also decreased MDA but increased the activities of SOD, CAT and GPx. Conclusion: Our results suggested the potential role of porcine brain extract as neuroprotectant. The possible underlying mechanism appeared to be related to the enhanced activities of SOD, CAT and GPx which in turn resulted in the decrease MDA. Moreover, our findings may shed light on the pharmacologic basis for the clinical application of traditional Chinese medicine to protect against stroke.