Abstract:

Objective: To study the effect of polysaccharide from Atractylodes macrocephala Koidz on inducible nitric oxide synthase (iNOS) after focal cerebral ischemia reperfusion in rats. Methods: Eighty-four male Sprague Dawley rats were randomly divided into four groups: blank control, reperfusion model group, distilled water group and polysaccharide from Atractylodes macrocephala Koidz group. Meanwhile, three subgroups of rats were created in each group based on time intervals of reperfusion (24, 72 and 120 h) after 1 h of ischemia. Water content and iNOS activity in the ischemic brain tissues were determined. Results: Compared with the blank control group, water content revealed a significant increase in ischemic brain tissues from reperfusion model group, distilled water group and polysaccharide from Atractylodes macrocephala Koidz group at each time point (P < 0.01). Similarly, iNOS activity also exhibited significantly higher in reperfusion model group, distilled water group and polysaccharide from Atractylodes macrocephala Koidz group than that of blank control group (P < 0.01), however, the iNOS activity in polysaccharide from Atractylodes macrocephala Koidz group was significantly lower than that in reperfusion model group and distilled water group (P < 0.01). Conclusion: Polysaccharide from Atractylodes macrocephala Koidz can dramatically inhibit iNOS expression and alleviate brain edema in ischemic areas after focal cerebral ischemia reperfusion.

Key words: polysaccharide from Atractylodes macrocephala Koidz, brain ischemia, reperfusion, nitric oxide synthase