Aloe vera ameliorates cerebral ischemia/reperfusion injury in rats

Abstract

Mustafa Guven, Yasemin Yuksel, Muserref Hilal Sehitoglu, Tarik Akman, Adem Bozkurt Aras, Murat Cosar

Objective: The protective effect of aloe vera is due to its anti-inflammatory properties. This experimental study focused on revealing the effects of aloe vera on antioxidant systems and determining the number of degenerated neurons after cerebral ischemia and reperfusion. Methods: Twenty-one rats were divided equally into three groups: group I rats were used as controls; group II rats were fed with standard diet, and group III rats were fed with standard diet plus aloe vera for 30 days. For groups II and III, the right middle cerebral arteries were occluded for 45 min and then reperfused for 24 h. After these procedures, rats in all groups were sacrificed. The levels of malondialdehyde and nuclear respiratory factor-1 and superoxide dismutase activity in the right cerebral cortex were measured. The number of degenerated neurons was counted in histological samples of the right cerebral cortex. Neuronal nitric oxide synthase expression was examined with immunohistochemical methods. Results: Superoxide dismutase activity and nuclear respiratory factor-1 levels were decreased in group II compared with group I (p < 0.05). In group III, superoxide dismutase activity and nuclear respiratory factor-1 levels were increased compared to group II (p < 0.05). Malondialdehyde levels were decreased in group III compared to group II (p < 0.05). The number of degenerated neurons was lower in group III compared to group II. Neuronal nitric oxide synthase expression was lower in group III compared to group II. Conclusions: The present findings suggest that aloe vera can reduce oxidative stress and degenerative changes in ischemic rat brain. Aloe vera supplementation may be useful for preventing or ameliorating ischemic cerebral disease.